Origin and history

As early as in the 18th century, Adam Smith discussed the economic effect on mercantilist legislation. However, to apply economics to analyze the law regulating nonmarket activities is relatively new. In 1961, Ronald Coase and Guido Calabresi independently from each other published two groundbreaking articles: "The Problem of Social Cost" [2] and "Some Thoughts on Risk Distribution and the Law of Torts". [3] This can been seen as the starting point for the modern school of law and economics.[4]
In the early 1970s, Henry Manne (a former student of Coase) set out to build a Center for Law and Economics at a major law school. He began at Rochester, worked at Miami, but was soon made unwelcome, moved to Emory, and ended at George Mason. The latter soon became a center for the education of judges -- many long out of law school and never exposed to numbers and economics. Manne also attracted the support of the John M. Olin Foundation, whose support accelerated the movement. Today, Olin centers (or programs) for Law and Economics exist at many universities.