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The Market for Corporate Law

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Author Info
Bar-Gill, Oren
Barzuza, Michal
Bebchuk, Lucian Arye
Abstract

This Paper develops a model of the competition among states in providing corporate law rules. The analysis provides a full characterization of the equilibrium in this market. Competition among states is shown to produce optimal rules with respect to issues that do not have a substantial effect on managers’ private benefits but not with respect to issues (such as takeover regulation) that substantially affect these private benefits. We analyse why a dominant state such as Delaware can emerge, the prices that the dominant state will set and the profits it will make. We also analyse the roles played by legal infrastructure, network externalities, and the rules governing incorporations. The results of the model are consistent with, and can explain, existing empirical evidence; they also indicate that the performance of state competition cannot be evaluated on the basis of how incorporation in Delaware in the prevailing market equilibrium affects shareholder wealth.

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Paper provided by C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers in its series CEPR Discussion Papers with number 3553.

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Date of creation: Sep 2002
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Handle: RePEc:cpr:ceprdp:3553

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Related research
Keywords: corporate law; Delaware; network externalities; private benefits of control; regulatory competition; shareholders;

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Find related papers by JEL classification:
G30 - Financial Economics - - Corporate Finance and Governance - - - General
G38 - Financial Economics - - Corporate Finance and Governance - - - Government Policy and Regulation
H70 - Public Economics - - State and Local Government; Intergovernmental Relations - - - General
K22 - Law and Economics - - Regulation and Business Law - - - Corporation and Securities Law

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References listed on IDEAS
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  1. Marianne Bertrand & Sendhil Mullainathan, 1998. "Is There Discretion in Wage Setting? A Test Using Takeover Legislation," NBER Working Papers 6807, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
    Other versions:
  2. Lucian Bebchuk & Oliver Hart, 2001. "Takeover bids vs. Proxy Fights in Contests for Corporate Control," NBER Working Papers 8633, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  3. Lucian Arye Bebchuk & Allen Ferrell, 2001. "A New Approach to Takeover Law and Regulatory Competition," NBER Working Papers 8148, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  4. Roberta Romano, 1998. "Empowering Investors: A Market Approach to Securities Regulation," Yale School of Management Working Papers ysm74, Yale School of Management. [Downloadable!]
  5. Lucian Bebchuk & Alma Cohen & Allen Ferrell, 2002. "Does the Evidence Favor State Competition in Corporate Law?," NBER Working Papers 9380, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  6. Bertrand, M. & Mullainathan, S., 1998. "Executive Compensation and Incentives: the Impact of Takeover Legislation," Papers 202, Princeton, Woodrow Wilson School - Public and International Affairs.
    Other versions:
  7. Daines, Robert, 2001. "Does Delaware law improve firm value?," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 62(3), pages 525-558, December. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  8. Bebchuk, Lucian Arye & Cohen, Alma, 2002. "Firms' Decisions on Where to Incorporate," CEPR Discussion Papers 3514, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  9. Lucian Bebchuk & Alma Cohen, 2002. "Firms' Decisions Where to Incorporate," NBER Working Papers 9107, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  10. Romano, Roberta, 1985. "Law as a Product: Some Pieces of the Incorporation Puzzle," Journal of Law, Economics and Organization, Oxford University Press, vol. 1(2), pages 225-83, Fall.
  11. Lucian Arye Bebchuk & Allen Ferrell, 2000. "Federalism and Takeover Law: The Race to Protect Managers from Takeovers," NBER Working Papers 7232, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  12. Roberta Romano & Sanjai Bhagat, 2001. "Event Studies and the Law: Part II - Empirical Studies of Corporate Law," Yale School of Management Working Papers ysm183, Yale School of Management. [Downloadable!]
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