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Showing results for:  “price gouging”

The non-constitutional problem with a health care mandate

There’s been much teeth-gnashing following yesterday’s ruling by a Virginia judge that the “individual mandate” portion of Obamacare is unconstitutional.  Among many other places, see the ongoing discussion at The Volokh Conspiracy.  I have a quick, non-constitutional response. It seems to me that there is a basic, deep problem with prohibiting citizens from opting out ... The non-constitutional problem with a health care mandate

Richard Thaler’s Rejoinder to the TOTM Free to Choose Symposium

I have now had a chance to read through the contributions to this event and have a few thoughts to share.  I cannot, of course, reply to everything that has been said here, and in any case, most of what I would say already appears in print.  Before getting into specifics let me say one ... Richard Thaler’s Rejoinder to the TOTM Free to Choose Symposium

Please Stop Calling Resale Price Maintenance Price-Fixing, Part 2

The ABA Antitrust Section is better than this.  Earlier offenders here and here. (HT: Danny Sokol)

Judge Kozinski on over-criminalizing agency costs

In U.S. v. Goyal, the government contended that the defendant, former CFO of Network Associates, had violated GAAP by causing the company to recognize revenue from certain sales sooner than it should have, and of lying to the company’s auditor.  The jury convicted defendant of securities fraud, false SEC filings, and making materially false statements ... Judge Kozinski on over-criminalizing agency costs

Ginsburg and Wright on A Taxonomy of Behavioral Law and Economics Skepticism

The behavioral economics research agenda is an ambitious one for several reasons.  The first reason is that behavioral economics requires a theory “true” preferences aside from – and in opposition to — the “revealed” preferences of the decision maker.  A second reason is that while collecting and documenting individual biases in an ad hoc fashion ... Ginsburg and Wright on A Taxonomy of Behavioral Law and Economics Skepticism

Judd Stone on Behavioral Economics, Administrative Agencies, and Unintended Consequences

Professors Henderson and Ribstein touch on two theoretical failures of the behavioralist movement which both reveal the prematurity of ‘behaviorally-informed’ regulatory proposals: the behavioralist assumptions that (1) behavioral biases theoretically necessitate, or at least enable, public intervention, and (2) governmental entities can net improve individual outcomes over the status quo of unfettered, if limited, human ... Judd Stone on Behavioral Economics, Administrative Agencies, and Unintended Consequences

Stephen Bainbridge on Mandatory Disclosure: A Behavioral Analysis

Mandatory disclosure is a—maybe the—defining characteristic of U.S. securities regulation. Issuers selling securities in a public offering must file a registration statement with the SEC containing detailed disclosures, and thereafter comply with the periodic disclosure regime. Although the New Deal-era Congresses that adopted the securities laws thought mandated disclosure was an essential element of securities ... Stephen Bainbridge on Mandatory Disclosure: A Behavioral Analysis

Sprigman and Buccafusco on Behavioral Law and Economics and the Road from Lab to Law

In our second post, we want to discuss some of the implications of the study (the details of which we described in our first post). One of the consistent concerns about BL&E in this symposium is about the too-quick jump from data to policy. We should emphasize that we think more work needs to be ... Sprigman and Buccafusco on Behavioral Law and Economics and the Road from Lab to Law

Kevin McCabe on Behavioral Economics and the Law

Having started my career as an experimental economist I probably have a little different, but I hope complimentary, perspective on behavioral economics and other experimental programs in general. I view the difference between experimental and behavioral economics in terms of (1) what is studied, and (2) how it is studied.  Experimental economists are interested in institutional and ... Kevin McCabe on Behavioral Economics and the Law

Richard Epstein on The Dangerous Allure of Behavioral Economics: The Relationship between Physical and Financial Products

Richard A. Epstein is the Laurence A. Tisch Professor of Law, New York University School of Law, The Peter and Kirsten Bedford Senior Fellow, The Hoover Institution, and the James Parker Hall Distinguished Service Professor of Law, The University of Chicago. Few academic publications have had as much direct public influence on the law as ... Richard Epstein on The Dangerous Allure of Behavioral Economics: The Relationship between Physical and Financial Products

Sprigman and Buccafusco on Valuing Intellectual Property

We would like to start by thanking Josh for inviting us to participate in what promises to be a fascinating discussion on an important subject.  We’re looking forward to engaging with the other members of the symposium. To begin with, we would like to talk about some of our own experimental research on the valuation ... Sprigman and Buccafusco on Valuing Intellectual Property

Geoffrey Manne on Interesting doesn’t necessarily mean policy relevant

Geoffrey A. Manne is Executive Director of the International Center for Law & Economics and Lecturer in Law at Lewis & Clark Law School The problem with behavioral law and economics (and its behavioral economics cousin) is not that it has nothing interesting to say, but rather that the interesting things it has to say ... Geoffrey Manne on Interesting doesn’t necessarily mean policy relevant