TY - JOUR
T1 - When will judgment proof injurers take too much precaution?
AU - Dari-Mattiacci, Giuseppe
AU - De Geest, Gerrit
PY - 2006/9
Y1 - 2006/9
N2 - Insolvency is usually blamed for inducing injurers to take too little precaution. However, it has also been shown that insolvency may induce potentially insolvent injurers to spend more on precaution than is socially desirable. There may be two reasons to take excessive precaution. On the one hand, insolvent injurers may find it cheaper to take precaution than solvent ones; in fact, today's expenses on precaution may reduce the assets available for tomorrow's liability. On the other hand, it may be optimal for insolvent injurers to substitute precautions that reduce the probability of accidents (and, hence, of liability) for precautions that reduce the magnitude of the harm (which they partially externalize on victims). Under what conditions will they do so? Among other results, we show that over-precaution may only occur with probability precautions and not with magnitude precautions.
AB - Insolvency is usually blamed for inducing injurers to take too little precaution. However, it has also been shown that insolvency may induce potentially insolvent injurers to spend more on precaution than is socially desirable. There may be two reasons to take excessive precaution. On the one hand, insolvent injurers may find it cheaper to take precaution than solvent ones; in fact, today's expenses on precaution may reduce the assets available for tomorrow's liability. On the other hand, it may be optimal for insolvent injurers to substitute precautions that reduce the probability of accidents (and, hence, of liability) for precautions that reduce the magnitude of the harm (which they partially externalize on victims). Under what conditions will they do so? Among other results, we show that over-precaution may only occur with probability precautions and not with magnitude precautions.
KW - Bankruptcy
KW - Insolvency
KW - Judgment proof
KW - Liability
KW - Over precaution
UR - https://www.scopus.com/pages/publications/33847057621
U2 - 10.1016/j.irle.2006.11.005
DO - 10.1016/j.irle.2006.11.005
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:33847057621
SN - 0144-8188
VL - 26
SP - 336
EP - 354
JO - International Review of Law and Economics
JF - International Review of Law and Economics
IS - 3
ER -