esade

Law & Economics (2225.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

Prerequisites

None.

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. First, it will explore the role of the government as the regulator of market activities. Students will be invited to reflect on why governments intervene in markets. Through the use of basic microeconomic techniques, the course 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.
The second part of the course will focus on the government as a redistributor. In light of the equity-efficiency tradeoff, students will be introduced to the concept of optimal taxation.

Course Learning Objectives

By the end of the course, students should be able to:

- 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,
- Understand the tradeoffs in redistribution policymaking.

CONTENT

1. Economics of Regulation

Why are markets regulated? Evaluation of different policy instruments under different market structures and in situations of market failure. Case studies of regulation in different markets.

2. Economics of taxation

Equity-efficiency tradeoff. Optimal taxation and redistribution. Different types of taxes and their impact on decision-making by consumers and firms.

Relation between Activities and Contents

1 2
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.

Gruber, J. (2016) Public Finance and Public Policy, 5th edition, Worth Publishers.

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 2023/2/13 to 2023/5/10:
Each Wednesday from 11:30 to 13:30. (Except: 2023/3/1 and 2023/4/5)
Each Monday from 11:30 to 13:00. (Except: 2023/4/3, 2023/4/10 and 2023/5/1)