Social Norms and Legal Design
CIRPEE Working paper 15-20
52 Pages Posted: 24 Sep 2015
There are 2 versions of this paper
Social Norms and Legal Design
Date Written: September 21, 2015
Abstract
We compare fault-based and strict liability offences in law enforcement when behavior is influenced by informal prosocial norms of conduct. Fault tends to be more effective than strict liability in harnessing social or self-image concerns. When enforcement relies on fines and assessing fault is not too costly, the optimal legal regime is fault-based with a standard consistent with the underlying social norm if convictions would seldom occur under optimal enforcement; otherwise liability should be strict. When sanctions are nonmonetary or when stigmatization imposes a deadweight loss, the legal standard may be harsher or more lenient than the social norm.
Keywords: Social preferences, regulatory offences, law enforcement, strict liability, fault, legal standard, compliance, deterrence
JEL Classification: D8, K4, Z13
Suggested Citation: Suggested Citation