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on Law and Economics |
| By: | Kalyagin Grigory (Department of Economics, Lomonosov Moscow State University) |
| Abstract: | In this article, using the methods of law and economics, we study three practices of law enforcement and punishment of criminals, which in our time look very controversial and even ineffective, but which were quite widespread in early Modern Russia: 1) interpretation in court, alcohol intoxication as a mitigating circumstance; 2) the use of torture during interrogations not only of the accused, but even of witnesses; 3) replacing the cutting off of limbs, as a form of punishment for criminals, with branding and tearing out nostrils. The analysis shows that these institutional forms of law enforcement and punishment of criminals can be effective (from the point of view of the state) solutions in this area. |
| Keywords: | law and economics, optimal enforcement, crime deterrence |
| JEL: | K14 K42 |
| Date: | 2025–03 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:upa:wpaper:0074 |
| By: | Ricardo Dahis (Department of Economics, Monash University); Martin Mattsson (Department of Economics, National University of Singapore); Nathalia Sales (Department of Economics, PUC-Rio) |
| Abstract: | We revisit the literature about the impact of reelection incentives on corruption with an extended dataset of corruption audit reports classified with Large Language Model (LLM). We first show that correlations between the LLM-generated corruption measures and manually coded assessments are comparable to correlations among the manual datasets themselves. Our results support previous findings in the literature, although the result is only statistically significant for one out of three measures of corruption. We document significant heterogeneity in the effect over time and investigate several explanations for these empirical patterns, including changing composition of politicians and increasing probability of legal penalties. |
| Keywords: | reelection incentives, corruption, LLM |
| JEL: | D72 K42 O17 |
| Date: | 2025–05 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:mos:moswps:2025-08 |
| By: | Jonathan Davis; Samuel Norris; Jadon Schmitt; Yotam Shem-Tov; Chelsea Strickland |
| Abstract: | This paper studies the use of mobile crisis response teams—a non-uniformed pair consisting of a mental health worker and a medic—as a component of emergency response to 911 calls. We provide the first evaluation of the longest-running program in the United States, Crisis Assistance Helping Out on the Streets (CAHOOTS) in Eugene, Oregon, which responds to calls involving mental illness, homelessness, and addiction either instead of or in addition to police officers. We use two complementary research designs to understand the effects and possible scope of these programs. First, we find that a series of program expansions into new areas and times reduced the likelihood that a 911 call resulted in an arrest and increased access to medical services. The arrest reduction likely reflects CAHOOTS’ role in de-escalating tense situations and resolving incidents without coercive measures. CAHOOTS is most often dispatched to the same calls as the police, acting as a supplement rather than a substitute. Second, we exploit idiosyncratic variation in CAHOOTS availability in the post-expansion periods to estimate the effect of additional marginal program expansions. We find that they are used mostly for calls that would otherwise go unanswered, suggesting that the program has reached a scale where it can respond to the most urgent calls. We conclude that crisis response teams play an important role as a complement to the police rather than acting only as substitutes. |
| JEL: | I10 J22 J45 K42 |
| Date: | 2025–05 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:nbr:nberwo:33761 |
| By: | Marcus Noland (Peterson Institute for International Economics); Julieta Contreras (Peterson Institute for International Economics); Lucas Rengifo-Keller (Former Peterson Institute for International Economics) |
| Abstract: | Drug overdose is the leading cause of death among Americans aged 15–44, exceeding heart disease, cancer, suicide, vehicular accidents, and COVID-19 in 2023. Most drug deaths are associated with fentanyl. This paper uses data on illicit drug prices to estimate reduced-form price equations of fentanyl, oxycodone, and alprazolam based on supply and demand, including hedonic characteristics. The results are used to estimate the relationship between fentanyl prices and overdoses. They suggest that the Chinese embargo on fentanyl shipments to the United States beginning in May 2019 raised street prices for a limited period, reducing fentanyl overdose deaths in the United States by roughly one-quarter over a three- to five-month period after the announcement. |
| Keywords: | Drugs, opioids, fentanyl, overdose deaths, China |
| JEL: | I1 F13 F51 K42 |
| Date: | 2025–05 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iie:wpaper:wp25-9 |
| By: | Hassid, Joseph; Maniatis, George; Polemis, Michael |
| Abstract: | We explore the value that lawyers in Greece attribute to knowledge of economics and business methods, both in terms of the legal fields where this knowledge is most useful and the specific areas of economics and business expertise that support their professional practice. Our findings, based on a survey of Greek law professionals conducted within the LAPET research project, indicate the broader relevance of economics and business methods across various legal fields. We find that lawyers should mainly possess knowledge in Economics for Business, The Functioning of Markets, and Economics of Competition / Antitrust, as these areas of economic expertise along with knowledge of Law Office Organization, are deemed the most useful for lawyers in their professional activities. Additionally, prior advanced education and professional roles significantly influence perceptions of the usefulness of economics and business methods knowledge. Lawyers with advanced economic education tend to recognize the value of economic knowledge more broadly across all areas. Similarly, business legal advisors perceive economic knowledge as beneficial, whereas self-employed legal practitioners tend to assign slightly lower importance to economic knowledge. Finally, legal specialization was found to be a key factor in shaping the perceived usefulness across different areas of economic and business knowledge. These findings provide valuable insights primarily for law students and early-career lawyers regarding the economics and business methods subjects they should focus on in their education and additional training. They also offer guidance on curriculum development by law schools, which they should consider integrating courses in applied economics and business methods to better equip future lawyers with the necessary skills for the modern legal landscape. |
| Keywords: | Law and economics; Legal education; Interdisciplinarity |
| JEL: | A20 C20 K0 |
| Date: | 2025–04–25 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:pra:mprapa:124590 |
| By: | Josué, ANDRIANADY |
| Abstract: | This article examines the governance of plastic bags in Madagascar, highlighting the disjunction between the ecological ambition of the legal framework and the ineffective reality of its enforcement. Despite the adoption of strict regulations since 2015, the country remains entangled in a regulatory maze where overlapping, poorly coordinated decrees generate confusion rather than impact. Drawing on field observations and institutional analysis, the paper identifies systemic bottlenecks, institutional contradictions, and the fragility of enforcement mechanisms. The plastic ban thus emerges as a revealing case of environmental governance in crisis, caught between symbolic politics and administrative inertia. |
| Keywords: | plastic ban, environmental governance, policy implementation, regulatory failure, Madagascar |
| JEL: | K2 Q0 Z0 |
| Date: | 2025 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:pra:mprapa:124692 |
| By: | Adriana Rocío Cardozo Silva; Christopher Prömel |
| Abstract: | In this study, we contribute to the literature about the effects of improving access to citizenship on integration outcomes. Hereby, we exploit exogenous variation from two citizenship reforms in Germany to estimate the effects of residency requirements on perceived discrimination, which is strongly linked to individual well-being, sense of belonging, and migration desires and decisions. We find that reducing waiting times to become eligible for citizenship decreases perceptions of discrimination. However, heterogeneity analyses reveal that these effects appear to be mostly limited to men and immigrants from Eastern European countries. In addition to our main analysis, we exploit exogenous variation from EU enlargement to show that citizens from countries that became part of the EU report significantly less discrimination than non-EU immigrants. |
| Keywords: | Perceived Discrimination, Legal Status, Naturalization, EU Enlargement |
| JEL: | J15 J61 J68 J78 K37 |
| Date: | 2025 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:diw:diwsop:diw_sp1223 |
| By: | John Eric Humphries (Yale University); CŽcile Macaire (Yale University); AurŽlie Ouss (University of Pennsylvania); Megan T. Stevenson (University of Virginia Law School); Winnie van Dijk (Yale University) |
| Abstract: | Using newly-linked administrative and commercial data from Virginia spanning 25 years, we study the consequences of incarceration. While previous research has examined labor market outcomes and recidivism, we focus on two of the primary channels through which low-income households build wealth: asset ownership (homes and cars) and human capital formation. To identify causal effects, we use a matched differencein-differences design. In line with much of the literature on the impact of incarceration in the U.S., we find no evidence of scarring effects on labor market outcomes or changes in recidivism beyond the incapacitation period. However, we find that incarceration leads to a persistent reduction in asset accumulation: seven years after sentencing, homeownership has declined by 1.1 percentage points (12.1%) and car ownership by 2.7 percentage points (18.1%). Incarceration also lowers human capital formation, reducing college enrollment by 1.4 percentage points (15.1%). |
| Date: | 2025–05–19 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:cwl:cwldpp:2441 |
| By: | Dominique Demougin; Benjamin Bental |
| Abstract: | In this study, we examine two adjudication methods designed to resolve disputes between principals and agents concerning bonus payments in relationships characterized by moral hazard and where the parties have been forced to use soft, imprecise, and subjective information to align incentives. The first method is a procedural approach where the court applies preponderance-of-the-evidence to determine whether the agent acted in accordance with the contract. In the second method, the court adopts a substantive approach, treating the original contract as incomplete, thus rendering a decision based on what it believes the parties would have agreed upon had they been able to complete the contract ahead of time. From an efficiency standpoint, we find that neither method consistently outperforms the other, although the procedural approach becomes more advantageous as the effort to be implemented becomes sufficiently large. |
| Keywords: | moral hazard, incentive contracting. |
| JEL: | D82 D86 |
| Date: | 2025 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ces:ceswps:_11861 |