• ISSN: 2010-023X (Print)
    • Abbreviated Title: Int. J. Trade, Economics and Financ.
    • Frequency: Quaterly
    • DOI: 10.18178/IJTEF
    • Editor-in-Chief: Prof.Tung-Zong (Donald) Chang
    • Managing Editor: Ms. Shira. W. Lu
    • Abstracting/ Indexing:  Crossref, Electronic Journals Library , EBSCO
    • E-mail: ijtef.editorial.office@gmail.com
HOME > Archive > 2012 > Volume 3 Number 3 (Jun. 2012) >
IJTEF 2012 Vol.3(3): 164-166 ISSN: 2010-023X
DOI: 10.7763/IJTEF.2012.V3.192

Legal Origin and Financial Development: New Evidence and Old Claims

Michael Graff

Abstract—The ‘law and finance theory’ predicts that the common law system provides the best basis for financial development and economic growth, followed by Scandinavian and German origin civil law and finally French origin civil law. This paper summarises the key points of the theory as well as a number of sceptical views. Moreover, it argues that the theory faces an identification problem, since the majority of common law countries have a market-based financial system, whereas the majority of civil law countries have a bank-based financial system. Furthermore, it is shown that one of the corner stones of the law and finance theory, its proposition that a common legal tradition implies a similar set of legal rules and procedure to protect financial investors, does not hold empirically. Last but not least, it is shown that recent additions to the theory's creditor right indicators data pool are eliminating the (weak) correspondence between business law and legal family that could be found in the original data set. Accordingly, the theory's claim that creditor protection is largely determined by the legal tradition of a particular country has to be reconsidered.

Index Terms—Legal tradition, creditor rights, financial development.

Legal tradition, creditor rights, financial development.

[PDF]

Cite:Michael Graff, "Legal Origin and Financial Development: New Evidence and Old Claims," International Journal of Trade, Economics and Finance vol.3, no.3, pp. 164-166, 2012.

PREVIOUS PAPER
Financial Distress–Detection Model for Islamic Banks
NEXT PAPER
What does it Take to Succeed in Small Business in Pakistan? the Lessons for Emerging Entrepreneurs

Copyright © 2008-2024. International Journal of Trade, Economics and Finance. All rights reserved.
E-mail: ijtef.editorial.office@gmail.com