ABSTRACT
The previous chapter introduced traditional law and development theory. Douglass North, as we saw, argues that strong contract law enforced by neutral arbiters is a “critical underpinning” for the development of a nation such as China, with its huge and impersonal economy that is part of an even larger global marketplace. A nation like China that is on the road to economic development also needs other strong rule-of-law protections, such as a reliable and consistently enforced law of property. Hernando de Soto echoes these views, observing how the failure of a society to move from reliance on informal norms to dependence on established and fairly enforced laws can place a drag on the overall economy. Randall Peerenboom and others focus more specifically on China’s unique case and the degree to which China seems to be pursuing the development pattern that North, de Soto, and others have predicted.
