The chapters in this book are the result of a project designed to explore opportunities for interdisciplinary research in international and comparative law, particularly research employing theoretical or empirical economics. The project reflects our conviction that economic analysis of law has much to contribute to the study of international matters, but that to date mainstream international legal scholars and scholars interested in economic methods have had lamentably little interaction.

The chapters address a range of issues, including international trade, trade and the environment, law and development, the political economy of privatization and exchange rate policies, economic theories of international institutional design, immigration policy, comparative bankruptcy, international antitrust, and extraterritorial jurisdiction. Dean Ronald Cass of Boston University Law School has generously contributed an overview discussing the broader interaction between economics and international law. He also discusses in detail a number of the chapters in this volume.

Each of the chapters was presented at a conference in the spring of 1995, sponsored by Duquesne University and George Mason University. Accordingly, some of the chapters are followed by comments and criticisms from conference participants.

This project would not have been possible without the support of Duquesne University and George Mason University and their respective law school deans, Nicholas P. Cafardi and Henry G. Manne. Lori Godshall of Duquesne University has provided tireless secretarial and logistical assistance throughout the process of preparing the papers and the final manuscript.