Fairness in Law and Economics: Introduction

Fairness in Law and Economics (Lee Anne Fennell & Richard H. McAdams, eds.) (Edward Elgar 2013)

University of Chicago Coase-Sandor Institute for Law & Economics Research Paper No. 704

U of Chicago, Public Law Working Paper No. 489

18 Pages Posted: 5 Oct 2014

See all articles by Lee Anne Fennell

Lee Anne Fennell

University of Chicago - Law School

Richard H. McAdams

University of Chicago Law School

Date Written: August 29, 2013

Abstract

This introduction, prepared for an edited volume, offers some observations on the importance — indeed, inescapability — of fairness concerns in law and economics. The relationship between fairness and the economic concept of efficiency is usually cast as an adversarial one. Rational choice economics typically describes human behavior as motivated by simple self-interest, rather than by concerns of morality, justice, or fairness. But we have found that the connections between concepts of fairness and the economic analysis of law are robust and diverse. After discussing some of these linkages, we describe the organization and content of the volume we have compiled. In it, economics engages with fairness, challenging the idea that the two concepts are alien to each other.

Keywords: fairness, law and economics

Suggested Citation

Fennell, Lee Anne and McAdams, Richard H., Fairness in Law and Economics: Introduction (August 29, 2013). Fairness in Law and Economics (Lee Anne Fennell & Richard H. McAdams, eds.) (Edward Elgar 2013), University of Chicago Coase-Sandor Institute for Law & Economics Research Paper No. 704, U of Chicago, Public Law Working Paper No. 489, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=2504819

Lee Anne Fennell (Contact Author)

University of Chicago - Law School ( email )

1111 E. 60th St.
Chicago, IL 60637
United States
773-702-0603 (Phone)

Richard H. McAdams

University of Chicago Law School ( email )

1111 E. 60th St.
Chicago, IL 60637
United States
773-834-2520 (Phone)

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