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Articles 1 - 11 of 11
Full-Text Articles in Law
The Misdirection Of Resources And The Current Recession, Mario J. Rizzo
The Misdirection Of Resources And The Current Recession, Mario J. Rizzo
Mario Rizzo
An analysis of the deficiencies of the stimulus pakage of February, 2009 from the point of view of a microeconomist.
Little Brother Is Watching You: New Paternalism On The Slippery Slopes, Mario J. Rizzo
Little Brother Is Watching You: New Paternalism On The Slippery Slopes, Mario J. Rizzo
Mario Rizzo
The “new paternalism” claims that careful policy interventions can help people make better decisions in terms of their own welfare, with only mild or nonexistent infringement of personal autonomy and choice. This claim to moderation is not sustainable. Applying the insights of the modern literature on slippery slopes to new paternalist policies suggests that such policies are particularly vulnerable to expansion. This is true even if policymakers are fully rational. More importantly, the slippery-slope potential is especially great if policymakers are not fully rational, but instead share the behavioral and cognitive biases attributed to the people their policies are supposed …
The Knowledge Problem Of The New Paternalism, Mario J. Rizzo
The Knowledge Problem Of The New Paternalism, Mario J. Rizzo
Mario Rizzo
The “new paternalism” is a set of policy prescriptions based on recent findings in behavioral economics whose purpose is to help individuals overcome a wide variety of behavior and cognitive biases. According to its proponents, it does not aim at replacing the preferences of individuals with those of the paternalist but rather to uncover the “true” preferences of individuals, that is, the preferences they would have if they had perfect knowledge, unlimited cognitive abilities and no lack of willpower. The purpose of this Article is to show that new paternalist policies founder on the shoals of a profound knowledge problem …
Justice Versus Benevolence: A Modern Humean View, Mario J. Rizzo
Justice Versus Benevolence: A Modern Humean View, Mario J. Rizzo
Mario Rizzo
This paper is an attempt to "update" and extend David Hume's moral psychology by demonstrating its consistency with the findings of construal level theory as recently developed by Trope, Liberman and others. Following Hume, justice is an abstract virtue the practice of which which does not give the individual positive psychological feedback in all cases. A single act of justice may be perceived as contrary to the public or private interest. It often takes a cognitive act of abstract construal to see and to appreciate the value of justice. Beneficence, on the other hand, is a concrete virtue. Its psychological …
Paternalist Slopes, Glen Whitman, Mario J. Rizzo
Paternalist Slopes, Glen Whitman, Mario J. Rizzo
Mario Rizzo
A growing literature in law and public policy harnesses research in behavioral economics to justify a new form of paternalism. Contributors to this literature typically emphasize the modest, non-intrusive character of their proposals. A distinct literature in law and public policy analyzes the validity of “slippery slope” arguments. Contributors to this literature have identified various mechanisms and processes by which slippery slopes operate, as well as the circumstances in which the threat of such slopes is greatest. The present article sits at the nexus of the new paternalist literature and the slippery slopes literature. We argue that the new paternalism …
The Problem Of Moral Dirigisme: A New Argument Against Moralistic Legislation, Mario Rizzo
The Problem Of Moral Dirigisme: A New Argument Against Moralistic Legislation, Mario Rizzo
Mario Rizzo
This Article applies a theory of rational choice to moral decisionmaking. In this theory, agents act primarily on local and personal knowledge to instantiate moral principles, virtues and moral goods. The State may seek to prevent them from acting as they independently determine by prescribing or proscribing certain conduct by formal legal means. If its purpose is to ensure that people act morally or become better persons, we call this “moral dirigisme.” Our thesis is that the need to use decentralized knowledge to determine the moral status of an act makes the task of the moral dirigiste well-neigh impossible. The …
The Camel's Nose Is In The Tent: Rules, Theories And Slippery Slopes, Mario Rizzo, Glen Whitman
The Camel's Nose Is In The Tent: Rules, Theories And Slippery Slopes, Mario Rizzo, Glen Whitman
Mario Rizzo
The authors provide a general theory for understanding and evaluating slippery slope arguments (SSAs) and their associated slippery slope events (SSEs). The central feature of the theory is a structure of discussion within which all arguments take place. The structure is multi-layered, consisting of decisions, rules, theories,and research programs. Each layer influences and shapes the layer beneath: rules influences decisions, theories influence the choice of rules, and research programs influence the choice of theories. In this structure, SSAs take the form of meta-arguments, as they purport to predict the future development of arguments in this structure. Evaluating such arguments requires …
Which Kind Of Legal Order? Logical Coherence And Praxeological Coherence, Mario Rizzo
Which Kind Of Legal Order? Logical Coherence And Praxeological Coherence, Mario Rizzo
Mario Rizzo
This article addresses the classic question: How can the common law ensure relative certainty of expectations and also adapt to economic or other changes in society?
Causal Apportionment: A Reply To The Critics, Mario Rizzo
Causal Apportionment: A Reply To The Critics, Mario Rizzo
Mario Rizzo
This article follows-up on the theory of apportionment by relative causal contribution developed in the Columbia Law Review. It is an answer to criticism by statisticians.
A Theory Of Economic Loss In The Law Of Torts, Mario Rizzo
A Theory Of Economic Loss In The Law Of Torts, Mario Rizzo
Mario Rizzo
This article contains a general theory that explains why pure economic loss ( that is, financial loss not associated with physical harm to the person or property of the plaintiff) is not to be recoverable at times and is recoverable at other times. The theory stresses the importance in the law of reducing contracting costs while still providing incentives to avoid true social costs.
Causal Apportionment In The Law Of Torts, Mario Rizzo
Causal Apportionment In The Law Of Torts, Mario Rizzo
Mario Rizzo
This article presents a theory and a technology of damage apportionment (in cases of joint, concurrent or successive torts) based on relative causal contributions. While the theory is developed along the lines of strict liability, it is also applicable, mutatis mutandis, to a negligence framework.