Law, Endowments, and Property Rights

Ross Levine ()

No 11502, NBER Working Papers from National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc

Abstract: While scholars have hypothesized about the sources of variation in property rights for over 2500 years, it is only very recently that researchers have begun to test these theories empirically. This paper reviews both the theory and empirical evidence supporting and refuting the law and endowment views of property rights. The law view holds that historically determined differences in national legal traditions continue to shape cross-country differences in property rights. The endowment view argues that during European colonization, differences in climate, crops, the indigenous population, and the disease environment influenced long-run property rights.

JEL-codes: K4 N01 O1 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2005-08
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-law and nep-reg
Note: IFM LE
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (147)

Published as Levine, Ross. "Law, Endowments and Property Rights," Journal of Economic Perspectives, 2005, v19(3,Summer), 61-88.

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Journal Article: Law, Endowments and Property Rights (2005)
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