A Paradox of Spontaneous Formation: The Evolution of Private Legal Systems
Amitai Aviram
Abstract
Scholarship on private legal systems (PLSs) explains the evolution of norms created and enforced by PLSs but rarely addresses the evolution of institutions that form PLSs. Such institutions are assumed to form spontaneously (unless suppressed by law) when law fails, neglects, or chooses not to direct behavior in a welfare-maximizing manner.