Role of LEANZ
LEANZ’s objectives are to:
- Promote the understanding of law and economics in New Zealand. Law and economics refers to an approach to legal (regulatory or policy) analysis which uses an economic framework focussed on efficiency of outcomes and the incentives on the subjects of the rule or policy in question. This includes an analysis of the significance of legal instruments and institutions in creating or moulding such incentives.
- Encompass a wide range of disciplines and legal or regulatory subject areas.
- Ensure the scholarship it promotes is relevant to current policy and regulatory debate in New Zealand.
How we advance our objective: seminar program and other vehicles
Practically, LEANZ’s principal means of furthering our objective is convening monthly seminars on topics and themes which approach legal, regulatory or policy issues using an economics framework, or specifically address the failings of such an analysis.
We foster free and open discussion and respectful debate of ideas in our seminars.
We aim to ensure our seminars are topical and relevant to current policy and legal debate in New Zealand. Where possible, we aim to provide balance (via panel discussions or presenting pro/contra viewpoints at different seminars). In doing so, we try to introduce a law and economics perspective to this debate.
Our seminars provide a forum for lawyers and economists to share perspectives on topics of current interest. We acknowledge the material support that our sponsor law firms provide us, and without whom we would not be able to deliver the seminar program. Therefore, we have particular regard for topics or speakers who are of interest to the legal community.
We will also aim to take advantage of opportunities that arise from time to time to promote our objectives, for instance the essay competition and Visiting Scholar program.