Economic Analysis of Accident Law

by Steven Shavell

Overview

“[This] is certainly a masterpiece.”—Thomas S. Ulen, Journal of Economic Literature

“The strength of Shavell’s book is its lucid, structured development and explication of the economic model. It represents the best systematic presentation of the relevance of economic argument for issues of risk allocation.”—Jules L. Coleman, Yale Law Journal

“Steven Shavell…[has] drawn upon [his] previous path-breaking work to issue [one of] the most important books in the law and economics of tort law since the release in 1970 of Guido Calabresi’s The Costs of Accidents…The work is a masterful tribute to the power of economic modelling and the use of optimization techniques…I, for one, was immensely impressed by the richness of the insights that Shavell’s theoretical approach provided into the fundamental issues of tort law.”—John J. Donohue III, Harvard Law Review

Accident law, if properly designed, is capable of reducing the incidence of mishaps by making people act more cautiously. Scholarly writing on this branch of law traditionally has been concerned with examining the law for consistency with felt notions of right and duty. Since the 1960s, however, a group of legal scholars and economists have focused on identifying the effects of accident law on people’s behavior. Steven Shavell’s book is the definitive synthesis of research to date in this new field.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780674024175
Publisher:	Harvard University Press
Publication date:	03/31/2007
Edition description:	New Edition
Pages:	320
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.00(h) x 0.75(d)

About the Author

Steven Shavell is Samuel R. Rosenthal Professor of Law at Harvard Law School.

Editorial Reviews

Steven Shavell...[has] drawn upon [his] previous path-breaking work to issue [one of] the most important books in the law and economics of tort law since the release in 1970 of Guido Calabresi's The Costs of Accidents...The work is a masterful tribute to the power of economic modelling and the use of optimization techniques...I, for one, was immensely impressed by the richness of the insights that Shavell's theoretical approach provided into the fundamental issues of tort law...Shavell's analysis is conducted with intellectual rigor and sophistication.

Harvard Law Review - John J. Donohue III

For anyone wanting to learn where we stand concerning economic analysis of accident law, Shavell's book provides an authoritative and fairly comprehensive summary of the state of the art.

Michigan Law Review - Michelle J. White

The strength of Shavell's book is its lucid, structured development and explication of the economic model. It represents the best systematic presentation of the relevance of economic argument for issues of risk allocation...Together [with William M. Landes and Richard A. Posner's The Economic Structure of Tort Law] they constitute the most comprehensive defense of the economic analysis of tort law currently available, and are strongly recommended accordingly.

Yale Law Journal - Jules L. Coleman

Steven Shavell is one of the leading practitioners of economic analysis of law; his book is a clear and careful discussion of what we currently know about the economic analysis of accident law.

Journal of Political Economy - David Friedman

[This] is certainly a masterpiece.

Journal of Economic Literature - Thomas S. Ulen

A lucid, up-to-date survey of the economics of accident law.

Economic Journal - Roger Bowles

For anyone wanting to learn where we stand concerning economic analysis of accident law, Shavell's book provides an authoritative and fairly comprehensive summary of the state of the art.
— Michelle J. White

Michigan Law Review

Steven Shavell...[has] drawn upon [his] previous path-breaking work to issue [one of] the most important books in the law and economics of tort law since the release in 1970 of Guido Calabresi's The Costs of Accidents...The work is a masterful tribute to the power of economic modelling and the use of optimization techniques...I, for one, was immensely impressed by the richness of the insights that Shavell's theoretical approach provided into the fundamental issues of tort law...Shavell's analysis is conducted with intellectual rigor and sophistication.
— John J. Donohue III

Harvard Law Review

The strength of Shavell's book is its lucid, structured development and explication of the economic model. It represents the best systematic presentation of the relevance of economic argument for issues of risk allocation...Together [with William M. Landes and Richard A. Posner's The Economic Structure of Tort Law] they constitute the most comprehensive defense of the economic analysis of tort law currently available, and are strongly recommended accordingly.
— Jules L. Coleman

Yale Law Journal

Steven Shavell is one of the leading practitioners of economic analysis of law; his book is a clear and careful discussion of what we currently know about the economic analysis of accident law.
— David Friedman

Journal of Political Economy

[This] is certainly a masterpiece.
— Thomas S. Ulen

Journal of Economic Literature

A lucid, up-to-date survey of the economics of accident law.
— Roger Bowles

Economic Journal