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Legal Costs as Barriers to Trade

Author

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  • van Ypersele, Tanguy
  • Turrini, Alessandro

Abstract

Recent evidence shows that the 'home bias puzzle' in international trade may be associated with the mere presence of national borders (McCallum (1995)). In this paper we provide a theoretical framework to explain why borders may matter so much for trade. Our argument is that even between perfectly integrated and similar countries the legal system differs, so that legal costs are higher when business is done abroad. Using a matching model of trade, we show that legal costs asymmetry produce home bias in an essentially different way than traditional trade costs. To estimate the relevance of legal costs in displacing trade we estimate gravity equations augmented with variables capturing the extent of legal asymmetries. Evidence from inter-national trade across OECD countries and intra-national trade across French support the view that legal asymmetries act as relevant obstacles to trade.

Suggested Citation

  • van Ypersele, Tanguy & Turrini, Alessandro, 2006. "Legal Costs as Barriers to Trade," CEPR Discussion Papers 5751, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers.
    • Handle: RePEc:cpr:ceprdp:5751
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Cited by:

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    2. Zagler, Martin, 2023. "Foreign direct investment, legal uncertainty and corporate income taxation," International Economics, Elsevier, vol. 173(C), pages 19-28.
    3. Helmut Wagner, 2012. "Is harmonization of legal rules an appropriate target? Lessons from the global financial crisis," European Journal of Law and Economics, Springer, vol. 33(3), pages 541-564, June.
    4. Albert Millogo & Ines Trojette, 2020. "Pro-trade effects of MENA immigrants in France: does governance matter?," Economics Bulletin, AccessEcon, vol. 40(4), pages 3219-3230.
    5. CORCOS, Gregory & DEL GATTO, Massimo & MION, Giordano & OTTAVIANO, Gianmarco I.P., 2007. "Productivity and firm selection: intra- vs international trade," LIDAM Discussion Papers CORE 2007060, Université catholique de Louvain, Center for Operations Research and Econometrics (CORE).
    6. Emanuela Carbonara & Francesco Parisi, 2009. "Choice of law and legal evolution: rethinking the market for legal rules," Public Choice, Springer, vol. 139(3), pages 461-492, June.
    7. Noel Gaston & Douglas R. Nelson, 2013. "Bridging Trade Theory And Labour Econometrics: The Effects Of International Migration," Journal of Economic Surveys, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 27(1), pages 98-139, February.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Legal costs; Matching; Cross-border trade;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • F12 - International Economics - - Trade - - - Models of Trade with Imperfect Competition and Scale Economies; Fragmentation

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