The Archives

Everything written by Joshua D. Wright on law, economics, and more

Richard Sander at ELS Blog

His first two installments are already up here and here.  This promises to be an interesting series.

Gordon Tullock in the National Review

John Miller has a fantastic essay on my colleague Gordon Tullock and his work in law and economics in the September 25 National Review. The following excerpt appears on the GMU Law website (and I believe subscribers can access the full article at the National Review): “Tullock is the author of one of the most ... Gordon Tullock in the National Review

Happy Constitution Day!

GMU will celebrate Constitution Day today with a debate between Professors Neomi Rao and Todd Zywicki (of VC fame). Here are the details: Worth Wining About!  Should You Have a Constitutional Right to be Your Own Wine Importer? A lively discussion of Granholm v. Heald. Featuring Professors Neomi Rao and Todd Zywicki. Moderated by Professor ... Happy Constitution Day!

Barnett on Antitrust, IP, and Apple at the GMU Antitrust Symposium

Yesterday I had the pleasure of participating in a panel discussion on standards for single firm conduct in the United States and the EU at the George Mason Antitrust Symposium, which focused on antitrust issues in the global marketplace (and I might add, was put together quite nicely by the GMU Law Review folks). The ... Barnett on Antitrust, IP, and Apple at the GMU Antitrust Symposium

Welcome to the Consumer Law & Policy Blog

The CL&P Blog, which is sponsored by the Consumer Justice Project, is up and running and promises: “[A]nalysis of the latest judicial decisions, commentary on current research and scholarship in consumer law, and discussion of a wide range of topics, such as consumer class actions, mandatory binding arbitration, predatory lending, debt collection, identity theft, and ... Welcome to the Consumer Law & Policy Blog

Are Dr. Miles' Days Numbered?

Maybe. WSJ Law Blog reports that SCOTUS may revisit the nearly century old precedent applying the per se rule to minimum resale price maintenance (RPM). Dr. Miles may well be the last vestige of antitrust before consumer welfare’s promotion as the guiding principle of the Sherman Act, which is to say, before economics had a ... Are Dr. Miles' Days Numbered?

DC Cracks Down on Price Gougers

After a year long investigation, Michael Giberson (of the excellent Knowledge Problem) points to the DC Attorney General’s announcement that a single retailer has agreed to pay a fine of $897.61 without admitting any wrongdoing.  Yes, 900 bucks.  Unfortunately, the lesson that the DC Attorney General has learned from this year long investigation was not ... DC Cracks Down on Price Gougers

Kimberly Moore Unanimously Confirmed By Senate

Congratulations to George Mason University Professor Kimberly Moore, who was confirmed by a vote of 92-0 today by the Senate and will soon take her place on the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit.  Howard Bashman reports that Professor Judge Moore is now the youngest member of the federal appellate bench.  On a personal ... Kimberly Moore Unanimously Confirmed By Senate

Henderson on Executive Compensation in Bankruptcy

Todd Henderson’s paper finds that compensation arrangements of solvent and insolvent firms are similar to each other. The empirical strategy involves the assumption that firms in bankruptcy are a useful control group for testing agency theory explanations of executive compensation because those costs are significantly lower for insolvent firms. I don’t know enough about bankruptcy ... Henderson on Executive Compensation in Bankruptcy

Explaining Backdating (and Jenkins Channels Manne Again)

Holman Jenkins reports that a group of economists led by Milton Friedman and Harry Markowitz are getting behind the idea of putting an end to the expensing of options. It is a great column. Jenkins goes on to discuss options backdating and makes the following points, which will sound unfamiliar to TOTM readers: “In no ... Explaining Backdating (and Jenkins Channels Manne Again)

CELS 2006

The First Annual Conference on Empirical Legal Studies will be held at the University of Texas Law School October 26-27. A preliminary program is available here with links to abstracts and articles. I’m absolutely thrilled to be participating in the conference, and am most of all looking forward to reading what looks like a very ... CELS 2006

Some Things I Read Today

1.  FTC Chairman Deborah Majoras on “The Federal Trade Commission in the Online World: Protecting Competition and Protecting Consumers.” (HT: Antitrust Review) 2.    Two interesting posts by Randy Picker here and here. 3.    Brian Leiter on the factors that help and hurt most for entry-level law school faculty candidates, with a promise to elaborate soon. ... Some Things I Read Today

FTC