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Commerce and Cooperation: Litigation and Settlement of Civil Disputes on the Australian Frontier, 1860–1990

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  26 July 2012

B. Zorina Khan
B. Zorina Khan
Affiliation:
Assistant Professor, Department of Economics, Bowdoin College, Brunswick, ME 04011. E-mail: bkhan@bowdoin.edu.
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Abstract

I examine the evolution of conflict and cooperation during economic growth by analyzing civil disputes in New South Wales between 1860 and 1900. Disputes per capita fell over time and the proportion of cases settled before trial increased, but patterns varied across locations and types of disputes. Economic conflicts were likelier to be settled than personal disputes, and the fraction of cases settled was significantly lower in frontier areas and in districts without access to transportation. The results suggest that increased market exchange facilitates the development of informal rules and encourages transactors to find cooperative solutions through private bargaining.

Type
Articles
Information
The Journal of Economic History , Volume 60 , Issue 4 , December 2000 , pp. 1088 - 1119
Copyright
Copyright © The Economic History Association 2000

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