If You Can’t Beat Them, Join Them : Richard Posner and Behavioral Law and Economics

Since its publication in 1973, Economic Analysis of Law (the Treatise) by Richard Posner has been recognized as the canonical treatise in the field. Given this status, observing changes over time in the different editions of the book can highlight substantial and methodological shifts in the area. On this backdrop, this brief essay highlights Posner’s change of attitude towards behavioral analysis of law over the years, culminating with the incorporation of behavioral insights into the last edition of his book, published in 2014. The essay is forthcoming in a special issue of History of Economic Ideas, on the occasion of 50 years since the publication of the first edition of Posner's book Economic Analysis of Law