Abstract
We relate the rules versus standards debate to legal norms of taking law in developing countries and argue in favour of more precise legal norms regulating takings in low-income countries. Clear, specific and exact legal norms should be socially preferred whenever a regulatory law cuts into fundamental rights as this improves the possibilities of supreme courts to check the constitutionality of such norms. This holds equally for rich and poor countries. But in poor countries, precise norms have additional advantages over standards, whose adjudication requires highly qualified and loyal judges and administrators, is information intensive and increases procedural costs for the parties. We argue that in the course of economic development, courts and administrations should be granted more flexibility and rigid rules should gradually be replaced by more adjustable legal standards which are more flexible and can adjust better to the merits of a single case.
Acknowledgements
I thank Christian Bumke, Yun-Chien Chang, Wolfgang Hoffmann-Riem, Michael Fehling. Ariel Porat, Uri Weiss, Ram Singh, participants of the law and economics colloquium at the faculty of law of Tel Aviv University, participants of the law and development workshop at Humboldt University and an unknown referee for valuable comments on an earlier draft. All remaining errors are mine.
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© 2019 Law and Development Review
Articles in the same Issue
- Frontmatter
- Introduction
- Reflections on Law and Development Scholarship
- Towards a Fourth Moment in Law and Development?
- Beyond the ‘Moments’ of Law and Development: Critical Reflections on Law and Development Scholarship in a Globalized Economy
- Freedom from Development
- Theoretical Frameworks for Law and Development: General Theory and Application
- General Theory of Law and Development: An Overview
- Law and Economic Development in South Africa: An Assessment through the General Theory of Law and Development
- Application of Y.S. Lee’s General Theory of Law and Development to Botswana
- Enhancement and Protection of Economic and Social Interests
- Rules versus Standards in Developing Countries: the Case for Clear and Precise Legal Norms on Eminent Domain Power
- Developmental State with Neoliberal Tools: A Portrait of the Brazilian Housing Financial System
- Distributive Justice and the Sustainable Development Goals: Delivering Agenda 2030 in India
- Development Governance and the Role of Development Agencies in the Development Process
- Institutional Law and Development Governance: An Introduction
- Mining Community Development in South Africa: A Critical Consideration of How the Law and Development Approach the Concept “Community”
- Something Old, Something New – Which Way to Go for Rule of Law Projects in the Agenda 2030 Era?
- Note
- A Comment on “Law and Development: Forty Years after ‘Scholars in Self-Estrangement’” by David Trubek
Articles in the same Issue
- Frontmatter
- Introduction
- Reflections on Law and Development Scholarship
- Towards a Fourth Moment in Law and Development?
- Beyond the ‘Moments’ of Law and Development: Critical Reflections on Law and Development Scholarship in a Globalized Economy
- Freedom from Development
- Theoretical Frameworks for Law and Development: General Theory and Application
- General Theory of Law and Development: An Overview
- Law and Economic Development in South Africa: An Assessment through the General Theory of Law and Development
- Application of Y.S. Lee’s General Theory of Law and Development to Botswana
- Enhancement and Protection of Economic and Social Interests
- Rules versus Standards in Developing Countries: the Case for Clear and Precise Legal Norms on Eminent Domain Power
- Developmental State with Neoliberal Tools: A Portrait of the Brazilian Housing Financial System
- Distributive Justice and the Sustainable Development Goals: Delivering Agenda 2030 in India
- Development Governance and the Role of Development Agencies in the Development Process
- Institutional Law and Development Governance: An Introduction
- Mining Community Development in South Africa: A Critical Consideration of How the Law and Development Approach the Concept “Community”
- Something Old, Something New – Which Way to Go for Rule of Law Projects in the Agenda 2030 Era?
- Note
- A Comment on “Law and Development: Forty Years after ‘Scholars in Self-Estrangement’” by David Trubek