One of the most discussed
questions in social science of the last decade is to what extent differences in
economic development among countries can be explained by differing law and
institutions. According to the ‘legal origins’-thesis, the answer is clear: it
claims that differences in economic performance are to a large extent dependent
on whether a country belongs to the civil law or common law family. Others have
severely criticised this thesis. This volume takes stock of the debate and
offers an integrated approach that not only takes into account the insights of
economics, but also of comparative law and empirics.
This book is published to celebrate the 100th volume in the
Ius Commune Europaeum series. Its publication also marks the 20th anniversary of
the Maastricht European Institute for Transnational Legal Research (METRO) and
the founding of the Maastricht European Private Law Institute (MEPLI).
