This is a reprint of Anthony Ogus' classic study of regulation, first published in the 1990s. It examines how, since the last decades of the twentieth century, there have been fundamental changes in the relationship between the state and industry. With the aid of economic theory Anthony Ogus critically examines the ways in which public law has been adapted to the task of regulating industrial activity and provides a systematic overview of the theory and forms of social and economic regulation. In particular, he explores the reasons why governments regulate, for which, broadly speaking, two...

Selecting an appropriate balance in the law between autonomy and paternalism is an important and difficult task, requiring a careful consideration of moral, political, and economic values. The contributions in this collection deal with the task at both general and specific levels, locating itself within the broader context of the relationship between law and market forces. Concepts are defined and analyzed, in particular the distinction between the coercive approach of -hard paternalism- in the law and the 'nudge' approach of -soft paternalism.- Attention is then focused on how the tensions...