A law and economics perspective on legal families

Abstract

The relationship between comparative law and the field of economics is increasingly important, but controversial. In the legal origins literature, economists have drawn from comparative law scholarship to suggest that common law systems may be more conducive to financial and economic development than civil law systems. Yet comparativists have been skeptical of the use of legal families to explain economic outcomes. After reviewing the discussion of legal families in the disciplines of comparative law, on the one hand, and economics, on the other, we conclude that a more nuanced approach is advisable. At the same time, we urge comparativists to engage in this debate more actively.