'This book reviews the law and development literature on everything from property rights and growth to gender and social development, with stress on the centrality of institutions for successful reform. It introduces the topic for newcomers and can serve as a useful reference guide for pros. The authors are cognizant of both the conventional wisdom on law and development and the views of critics. Committed reformers, they look for ways that legitimate critiques can be dealt with and reform moved ahead. Yet they avoid some of the errors of the reform camp: while some see the rule of law as a development panacea and envision rule of law reform as a simple technocratic enterprise, the authors understand that the relation between law and development is complex and not well understood, acknowledging that effective reform requires flexibility, deep local knowledge and strategic ingenuity.'- David Trubek, Harvard Law School and the University of Wisconsin, USElgar Advanced Introductions are stimulating and thoughtful introductions to major fields in the social sciences and law, expertly written by the world's leading scholars. Designed to be accessible yet rigorous, they offer concise and lucid surveys of the substantive and policy issues associated with discrete subject areas.This book offers a concise and accessible introduction to the main themes and debates in the field of law and development. It unpacks the role of legal systems and institutions, and investigates what kinds of law and legal arrangements are perceived (correctly or not) to encourage and facilitate development.Starting with a clear and readable overview of the key concepts and theories of development, the authors probe the issues which arise in both private law and public law as well as in international economic relations. The book also brings in key debates relating to politics and identity - especially highlighting gender and development as a topic that poses some of the biggest challenges for institutional conceptions of development.Written with the insight of two experts in the field, this unique book covers the most recent trends in law and development research and points out key topics that remain underexplored. It will be essential reading for students, practitioners and policy-makers needing to quickly gain an understanding of the core principles of this multi-faceted topic.Contents: Introduction 1. Defining Development 2. Determinants of Development 3. Institutional Theories of Development 4. The Rule of Law and Development: A Legal Perspective 5. The Rule of Law: An Economic Perspective 6. Political Regimes and Development 7. Ethnic Conflict and Development 8. Gender and Development 9. Public Administration and Development 10. Corruption and Development 11. State-owned Enterprises, Privatization and Public-private Partnership 12 International Trade 13. Foreign Direct Investment 14. Foreign Aid 15. Conclusion Index