Law & Economics (2235.YR.005937.2)
General information
Type: |
OBL |
Curs: |
3 |
Period: |
S semester |
ECTS Credits: |
5 ECTS |
Teaching Staff:
| Group |
Teacher |
Department |
Language |
| Year 3 |
Daniel Sanchez Moscona |
Economía, Finanzas y Contabilidad |
ENG |
Previous Knowledge
Knowledge of some basic concepts in microeconomics (supply and demand, competitive equilibrium, consumer and producer surplus) is recommendable but not strictly necessary.
Workload distribution
50% in class
50% individual and group work.
COURSE CONTRIBUTION TO PROGRAM
This course will explore the role of the State as a regulator in the economy. The course will be divided into two big blocks: economics of antitrust and economics of regulation. Students will initially be invited to reflect on why governments intervene in the economy. Through the use of basic microeconomic techniques, the course will identify different market failures and will analyze the costs and benefits of different policy instruments. This should help students understand that such instruments may have different effects under different market structures and institutional settings. Several case studies will be used to understand the challenges that regulators may face in practice as well as the evaluate the results of different regulatory efforts.
Course Learning Objectives
By the end of the course, students should be able to:
- Understand the goals of antitrust law and its implementation challenges,
- Understand the challenges and tradeoffs that regulators policymakers face when regulating markets,
- Use basic microeconomic techniques to analyze complex problems rigorously,
- Apply a combination of theory and empirical analysis to evaluate the impact of policy instruments in specific markets,
CONTENT
1. Introduction - competitive markets Introduction to perfect competition. Rationality of consumers and producers under perfect competition. Equilibrium. Welfare economics |
2. Antitrust - Competition economics Objectives of antitrust law. Early development of antitrust law in the US. Antitrust law with respect to price fixing and monopolization. Case studies |
3. Economics of regulation Rationale for economic regulation. Natural monopolies. Externalities. Market case studies. Environmental regulation |
Relation between Activities and Contents
|
1 |
2 |
3 |
| Class Participation |
|
|
|
| Problem sets |
|
|
|
| Final Exam |
|
|
|
Methodology
- Lectures
- Reading of academic articles and other supplementary material.
- Problem Sets.
ASSESSMENT
ASSESSMENT BREAKDOWN
| Description |
% |
| Class Participation |
15 |
| Problem sets |
35 |
| Final Exam |
50 |
Assessment criteria
- Students can only be assessed if they attend at least 80% of lectures. If students do not meet this condition, their mark will be recorded as "Absent". These percentages, however, do not include justified absences. Students are required to inform the teacher at least one week before the absence in question, except in cases of force majeure. The only justifiable absences are those attributed to: (i) illness; (ii) the death of a family member or similar; and (iii) ESADE activities for which students have received approval to attend from Programme Management.
- Students with a final mark of 50% or higher will pass the course. Students who fail the course will take a resit exam. In order to have the right to a resit, students must have attended at least 80% of lectures.
- Plagiarism (or submitting material that in part or whole is not entirely one's own work) is strictly prohibited. Action will be taken in instances of plagiarism. Students must turn in their written assignments via the Moodle platform. The instructor will analyse their work using anti-plagiarism software (such as Turnitin).
Bibliography
Sherman, R. "Market Regulation", Pearson / Addison Wesley, 2008.
W. Kip Viscusi, Joseph E., Harrington Jr. and David E. M. Sappington: "Economics of Regulation and Antitrust", MIT press 5th edition, 2018.
Stiglitz, J. and Rosengard, J. (2015) Economics of the Public Sector, 4th edition, W. W. Norton & Company.
* The lecturer may provide additional readings throughout the course (academic papers, newspaper articles, etc.)
Timetable and sections
| Group |
Teacher |
Department |
| Year 3 |
Daniel Sanchez Moscona |
Economía, Finanzas y Contabilidad |
Timetable Year 3
From 2024/2/14 to 2024/5/15:
Each Wednesday from 10:00 to 11:30. (Except: 2024/3/27 and 2024/5/1)
Each Wednesday from 11:45 to 13:15. (Except: 2024/3/27 and 2024/5/1)
Wednesday 2024/6/5 from 9:15 to 12:30.
Friday 2024/6/28 from 9:15 to 12:30.
