Document Type

Article

Publication Date

12-2001

Abstract

There was a time when the empire of Law was not overrun by economists. The economists had their own fiefdoms to be sure-there was the Duchy of Antitrust and the Kingdom of Regulatory Law-but the economists lived in peace within these borders, welcoming many unlike themselves into their midst, only gently proselytizing their students in the first few classes of a term, and swearing fealty to the law. It is true that a few marauders from beyond the borders saw the wealth of the empire and sought to colonize it, but even the most daring, Archbishop Coase and Duke Gary of Becker, for example, had too few troops to do much damage and largely failed in their attempts to convert the heathen. In retrospect, however, it is clear that their assaults softened resistance. When a new champion arose, this time not from beyond Law's borders but from within the heart of the kingdom, resistance crumbled and the floodgates were opened. How proud Sir Richard Posner must have felt when from behind the well-fortified ramparts of Castle Chicago, he saw bands of economists spreading over Law's terrain. Some of the fiercest and strongest fighters came from outside, but more, including some who were equally fierce, were willing converts from the ranks of the empire's citizens.

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