Both asset ownership and contracts play important roles in providing incentives for relationship specific investments, and hence in determining the boundary of the firm. Significant progress has been made in understanding the roles that these instruments play, but largely in isolation from each...

The purpose of this paper is to show that the common law governing the employment of labor makes the distinction not only between employee and independent contractor but also between managerial control and agency. The idea is that common law precedents govern workers who are employed and...