Paradigms of 'Law and Development': From Economic Engineering to Rights Inflation

Jalali, Mohammad; Mouhebati, Ehsan

doi:10.48308/eclr.2025.235745.1061

Paradigms of 'Law and Development': From Economic Engineering to Rights Inflation

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

Mohammad Jalali ¹ ^¶

Ehsan Mouhebati ²

¹ Assistant Professor, Faculty of Law, Shahid Beheshti University, Tehran, Iran

² Phd Candidate, Faculty of Law, Shahid Beheshti University, Tehran, Iran. Corresponding Author Email: e_mouhebati@sbu.ac.ir

https://doi.org/10.48308/eclr.2025.235745.1061

Abstract

The relationship between law and development has evolved through three distinct intellectual paradigms in developing countries since World War II. This article examines the defining characteristics of the concepts and relationship between 'law' and 'development' within these paradigms, both in theory and practice, and analyzes the current paradigm. The first paradigm, known as the law and development movement, aimed to promote economic modernization through the strategic use of legal instruments. In this framework, law functioned primarily as an economic tool wielded by bureaucrats, often challenging the independence of the judiciary and the roles of legal professionals. The second paradigm, neoliberalism, positioned private law at the core of economic growth, viewing it as a foundation that facilitated predictability and efficiency for economists in economic activities. The third paradigm emerged in response to declining human development indicators, advocating for a substantive conception of development rooted in rights and freedoms. Under this paradigm, rights became integral goals within development agendas, and new formalism enabled regulation to play a role in market control, protection of individual rights and the expansion of justice. However, in practice, the legal system of development resulted in an inflation of rights. This study critically analyzes this evolution within the context of developing countries, identifying the paradigms of law and development within the historical framework of development.

Keywords

Law and development

Law and Development Movement

Neoliberalism

human development

Legal System of Development

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