Globalization, Law and Development: Introduction and Overview

Abstract

Most observers would agree that globalization can in principle be a positive phenomenon and aid human development even if they disagree about the extent to which the current wave of globalization has in fact been helpful. A key issue in these debates is the extent to which globalization widens or narrows the gap between the developed nations and the developing world, or at least significantly improves the lot of the developing world even if it does not narrow the gap. To the extent globalization helps bring developing countries up to the standards of developed countries' life expectancy, health, education, and overall prosperity, most would agree that it should be viewed positively.

The debate has therefore focused primarily on how globalization can be managed in a way that helps development. The role of law in development has become a key focus of this debate in recent years. Yet stale discussion about the importance of law in development from a generation ago has largely given way to richly textured debates about what forms of what law, public administration, enforcement, and other institutions, developed where and by whom, might improve economic growth how, and for whom. The papers in this issue [26 Michigan Journal of International Law 1 (2005)] were written for a conference that we convened at the University of Michigan Law School in April, 2004 to address these issues. We invited a number of experts from a variety of disciplines to discuss issues related to the links between globalization, development, and law. We summarize the articles and remarks, and the offer some observations.

Keywords: Banking, Financial Institutions, Regulation, Law & Economics, Development, Economics

JEL Classification: D10, D60, G21, I38, K20, O16