ABSTRACT
This chapter discusses of the medieval Law Merchant and related institutions. It argues that even if no pair of traders come together frequently, if each individual trades frequently enough within the community of traders, then transferable reputations for honesty can serve as an adequate bond for honest behavior if members of the trading community can be kept informed about each other's behavior. In the Champagne Fairs, where merchants brought samples of their goods to trade, the quantities they brought were not always sufficient to supply all the potential demand. The chapter provides the possibility that the judge may threaten to sully the reputations of honest traders unless they pay bribes. It suggests that the outlines of an important step in the evolution, namely the early development of commercial law prior to the rise of large-scale third-party enforcement of legal codes by the nation-state.
