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Encyclopedia of Law and Economics pp 188–194Cite as

Causation

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Abstract

Causation is often said to be one of the most intricate issues in private law. This entry deals with how causation is considered from a law and economics point of view and contributes to enhance our understanding of causation requirements in the law. First, it deals with the main distinction between ex ante and ex post approach of causation. This leads to study the relationships between causation requirements and efficiency, and the concept of scope of liability is discussed. Then, this economic approach is extended to more difficult cases implying uncertainty. Last, it provides some insights on how these findings remain relevant when considering bounded rationality.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. CNRS, BETA, University of Lorraine, Nancy, France

    Samuel Ferey

Authors
  1. Samuel Ferey
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Correspondence to Samuel Ferey .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. MRE and University of Montpellier, Montpellier, France

    Alain Marciano

  2. Faculté d’Economie, Université de Montpellier and LAMETA-UMR CNRS, Montpellier, France

    Alain Marciano

  3. DiGSPES, University of Eastern Piedmont, Alessandria, Italy

    Giovanni Battista Ramello

  4. IEL, Torino, Italy

    Giovanni Battista Ramello

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Ferey, S. (2019). Causation. In: Marciano, A., Ramello, G.B. (eds) Encyclopedia of Law and Economics. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-7753-2_633

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