Law Commons^™

Do Pigs Need Wings? Introductory Thoughts On Law Reviews, Errors, And The Coase Theorem, Stephen Calkins

Law Faculty Research Publications

Ever since shepherd children stumbled upon the Dead Sea Scrolls, a small group of scholars controlled access to these writings. These scholars painstakingly edited and published so far about half the historic texts. Scholars not numbered among the select few complained of the arrogance implicit in limiting access to the original materials. Now the critics have their chance. In late 1991 the Biblical Archaeology Society published a "facsimile edition" of the previously unpublished scrolls. Professor Robert H. Eisenman, coeditor of the new edition, boasted that this was "'the last stage in breaking the monopoly' of authorized editors over the scroll …

Coase, Rents, And Opportunity Costs, Stewart J. Schwab

Cornell Law Faculty Publications

Professor Posin is to be congratulated on his recent article in this Review, "The Coase Theorem: If Pigs Could Fly," for creating a precise example that purports to disprove the Coase Theorem. Legal scholarship should strive more towards verifiable or falsifiable statements about the law. Of course, falsifiable statements are a risky strategy, and in this case the risk has materialized. Posin's claim—that his example shows a flaw in the Coase Theorem—is false.

Posin's claim is an especially bold one, for his example deals with a shifting legal entitlement between two producers. Most successful attacks on the Coase Theorem have …