Did the Cooperative Start Life as Joint-Stock Company? Business Law and Cooperatives in Spain, 1869-1931

35 Pages Posted: 9 Jun 2010 Last revised: 11 Jun 2010

See all articles by Timothy W. Guinnane

Timothy W. Guinnane

Yale University - Department of Economics; CESifo (Center for Economic Studies and Ifo Institute)

Susana Martínez-Rodríguez

University of Murcia-Spain

Date Written: June 7, 2010

Abstract

Studies of Spanish cooperatives date their spread from the Law on Agrarian Syndicates of 1906. But the first legislative appearance of cooperatives is an 1869 measure that permitted general incorporation for lending companies. The 1931 general law on cooperatives, which was the first act permitting the formation of cooperatives in any activity, reflects the gradual disappearance of the cooperative’s “business” characteristics. In this paper we trace the Spanish cooperative’s legal roots in business law and its connections to broader questions of the freedom of association, the formation of joint-stock enterprises, and the liability of investors in business and cooperative entities. Our account underscores the similarities of the organizational problems approach by cooperatives and business firms, while at the same time respecting the distinctive purposes cooperatives served.

Keywords: cooperative, general incorporation, business enterprise, freedom of association, freedom of contract

JEL Classification: N43, N23, K20

Suggested Citation

Guinnane, Timothy W. and Martínez-Rodríguez, Susana, Did the Cooperative Start Life as Joint-Stock Company? Business Law and Cooperatives in Spain, 1869-1931 (June 7, 2010). Yale Economics Department Working Paper No. 81, Yale University Economic Growth Center Discussion Paper No. 987, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=1621874 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.1621874

Timothy W. Guinnane (Contact Author)

Yale University - Department of Economics ( email )

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CESifo (Center for Economic Studies and Ifo Institute)

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Munich, DE-81679
Germany

Susana Martínez-Rodríguez

University of Murcia-Spain ( email )

Avda Teniente Flomesta, 5
Murcia, Murcia 30100
Spain

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