Corporate Responsibility along Transnational Supply Chains

Worldwide, an estimated 160 million children work as child labourers, with an upward trend. This abusive state of affairs, which is compounded along complex, transnational supply chains, goes hand in hand with various adverse effects on the environment, such as pollution, endangered biodiversity and rising greenhouse gas emissions. Meanwhile, Switzerland lacks a law that comprehensively regulates corporate responsibility to protect the people and the environment along the transnational supply chains. Both the legal and economic disciplines have only begun to address the regulation of transnational corporate responsibility. This research project addresses the existing research gaps and provides an interdisciplinary contribution to future regulatory developments. The proposed regulation de lege ferenda, derived from a law and economics and comparative law perspective as well as from an empirical evaluation, opens the path towards the sustainable coexistence of humanity and the environment. 

SNF-Research Project „Third-Party Funding of Collective Redress. A Law and Economics Perspective“

The research project investigates the role of litigation funding in collective redress. Collective redress is an instrument that aims to facilitate access to justice for a large number of  consumers by adjudicating the claims of many plaintiffs in a single procedure, thus sharing and saving legal costs and lawyers' fees. Litigation funders can participate in these complex and expensive actions and, if the lawsuit is successful, receive a share of the sums paid out to the plaintiffs. While in the U.S. high damages could be obtained by means of class actions, collective redress instruments are yet to be introduced in the EU and Switzerland.

Monetary incentives motivate litigation funders to support collective actions and, thereby, improve legal protection for consumers. However, the question arises whether profit motives instead of consumer protection can become the guiding principle of such proceedings. In his dissertation with the working title „Third-Party Funding of Collective Redress. A Law and Economics Perspective“ Anton Burri aims to clarify the question whether and to what extent litigation funding in collective redress should be specifically regulated. For the project supervised by Prof. Dr. Klaus Mathis, the topic will be examined from a legal and economic perspective. Possible regulatory measures such as bans, price regulation, restrictions on the influence on proceedings, disclosure requirements, capital requirements, and cost allocation rules will be examined. The results of the research project can serve as a basis for the possible introduction of collective redress instruments in Switzerland.

Law and Economics Conferences

Annually, a Law and Economics conference is held in Lucerne. The next conference is dedicated to the topic „Law and Economics of the Digital Transformation“.

Next Law and Economics Conference

Held Law and Economics Conferences 

Law and Economics Workshop

In this course international scholars in the field of Law and Economics present their research findings. The participants critically discuss the working papers and comment on them.

Law of Sustainable Development

In times of climate change, increasing inequality and societal division, we look at the role of the law in fostering sustainable development – in Switzerland and globally. The course is divided into two parts: 1) origins, theories and legal definition of „sustainable development“ along with the law of sustainable development in Switzerland, and 2) the international law of sustainable development with a focus on its implementation and enforcement in a number of case studies.
It is intended to shed light on the underlying concepts of sustainable development, how these conepts are translated into the law, and on the obstacles in law and in practice standing in the way of sustainable development globally. We will also present a number of best-practices to illustrate the necessary prerequisites for sustainable development in climate change mitigation, in the preservation of natural resources, and in the fight against poverty.

Law of Sustainable Development

Integrating Seminar Law and Economics: Environment, Economy and Human Rights (SS 22)

It is estimated that over 40 million people still live in modern slavery worldwide. At the same time, we now face a multitude of environmental problems such as pollution, endangered biodiversity and climate change. In the midst of these developments are economic actors, be it SMEs or transnational corporations. They are both a key driver and a crucial part of the solution to the current threats to humanity and the environment.

At this interface of environment and Business and Human Rights, interdisciplinary approaches are needed more than ever to effect changes in favour of the protection of humanity and the environment. Both law and economics can contribute to solving the challenges that arise. The law and economics perspective is particularly promising, linking legal and economic analyses in a problem-oriented manner.

Integrating Seminar Law and Economics: Environment and Regulation (FS 21)

Today, we face a multitude of environmental problems such as pollution, endangered biodiversity and climate change. Both law and economics can contribute to solving these problems. The most suitable approach is an interdisciplinary perspective in which legal and economic analyses are linked in a problem-oriented manner.
In detail, the following topics, among others, are to be explored in depth in written papers and then discussed in plenary sessions, taking into account economic and legal considerations.

Integrating Seminar Law and Economics: Environment and Regulation