The Enforceability of the GM–Fisher Body Contract: Comment on Goldberg

12 Pages Posted: 2 Oct 2008 Last revised: 9 Jul 2011

See all articles by Benjamin Klein

Benjamin Klein

University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) - Department of Economics; Compass Lexecon

Date Written: October 1, 2008

Abstract

Goldberg unconvincingly claims that the General Motors (GM)–Fisher Body contract was in fact legally unenforceable. But even if Goldberg's contract law conclusion were correct, it is economically irrelevant. It is clear from the actions of Fisher and GM and from the testimonial and other contemporaneous evidence that both transactors considered the contract legally binding and behaved accordingly. Therefore, proper economic analysis of the Fisher–GM case should continue to assume contract enforceability, and the economic determinants of organizational structure illustrated by the case remain fully valid.

JEL Classification: L14, K12

Suggested Citation

Klein, Benjamin, The Enforceability of the GM–Fisher Body Contract: Comment on Goldberg (October 1, 2008). Industrial and Corporate Change, Vol. 17, Issue 5, pp. 1085-1096, 2008, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=1276650 or http://dx.doi.org/dtn032

Benjamin Klein (Contact Author)

University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) - Department of Economics ( email )

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Compass Lexecon ( email )

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