O.J's Defense: A Reductio Ad Absurdum
of the Economics of Ronald Coase and Richard Posner
Abstract
A reductio ad absurdum takes the principles of a doctrine, applies them
exactly as their creators did only to an entirely different subject and
with horrendous results, and thus shows what absurd conclusions are
logically compatible with the original thesis. The entire article applies
the tenets of the Chicago law and economics tradition, as adumbrated by two
of its most distinguished practitioners, Coase and Posner. It shows that on
the basis of this canon a case can be made out for freeing O.J. Simpson-
even if he did indeed kill his wife. The article is an attempt to show that
the libertarian reliance on personal and private property rights is a much
more robust thesis than the Chicago precept of wealth maximization.
Keywords: property rights, theft, Posner, central planning, murder,
slavery, rule of law, Coase
Even though the O.J. Simpson case has been decided, it is still much in the
news. (1) Pundits, commentators, journalists, and editorialists, are still
weighing it with discussion and analysis. There is no reason for the
economics profession alone to remain silent on this highly charged issue
when so many others have entered the fray.
Even after the trial, opinions about the case fall into two main
categories: (1) 0.J. Simpson did stab his former wife, Nicole Brown
Simpson, and her companion Ronald Goldman and should he punished for his
act, and (2) he is innocent and should therefore be freed. (2) Fortunately,
with the tools of modern economic analysis, especially Coasian and
Posnerian insights, we can have our cake and eat it too: we can defend the
position that even if O.J. Simpson is guilty of the acts with which he is
charged, he should still be set free. (3)
The Coasian System
According to the analytic framework developed by Coase (1960), there are
two states of the world. The First state, for the most part an imaginary
one, is characterized by zero transactions costs. This means that one can
easily and cheaply find people with whom a bargain can be struck and that
no one erects artificial barriers to commercial transactions (there are no
holdouts, no opportunistic behavior, and so on). States Coase (1960, p.15):
"In order to carry out a market transaction it is necessary to discover who
it is that one
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http://cba.loyno.edu/faculty/Block/Blockarticles/OJsDefense.htm
