Law and Economics of Justice: Efficiency, Reciprocity, Meritocracy

While earlier volumes of the series «Economic Analysis of Law in European Legal Scholarship» focused on specific developments such as the coronavirus crisis or digital transformation, this anniversary edition revisits the methodological and philosophical foundations of law and economics. It explores, from an interdisciplinary perspective, the core principles of efficiency, reciprocity, and meritocracy, and their relationship to law and justice. Efficiency remains a key objective in the economic analysis of law, commonly defined as either Pareto efficiency or Kaldor–Hicks efficiency. The concept of reciprocity challenges the traditional model of the self-interested homo economicus by incorporating insights from behavioral economics, which show that fairness and mutual benefit often shape individual behavior, particularly in negotiations and market interactions. Meritocracy, the idea that individuals succeed based on talent and effort, is seen as a mechanism for both promoting social mobility and enhancing societal efficiency. However, it has also faced criticism for perpetuating social, economic, and racial inequalities rather than eliminating them.