The relationship between law and development: optimists versus skeptics

Abstract

This article examines part of the most recent intellectual production on law & development based upon three recently published books: two collections of essays organized by Thomas Carothers and by David M. Trubek and Alvaro SanTos, and a monograph by Kenneth Dam. The article shows that there is ongoing debate about fundamental questions such as whether law is an important factor in determining social or economic outcomes in developing societies given the existence of informal methods of social control; whether there are insurmountable economic, political or culture obstacles to effective legal reform; as well as, assuming effective legal reform is feasible, what types of reforms are conducive to development and what types of actors ought to implement them. We argue that although there are some reasons for optimism about the potential impact of legal reforms upon development, the relevant empirical literature is inconclusive on many important issues and counsels caution about the wisdom of continuing to invest substantial resources in promoting legal reform in developing countries without further research that clarifies these issues.