Formal and informal contract enforcement institutions Cover Image

Formalne i nieformalne mechanizmy egzekwowania umów
Formal and informal contract enforcement institutions

Author(s): Marta Sordyl
Subject(s): Economy, Business Economy / Management
Published by: Wydawnictwo Naukowe Uniwersytetu Szczecińskiego
Keywords: contract enforcement; formal institutions; informal institutions

Summary/Abstract: All markets in every economy need efficient mechanisms of contract execution and enforcement. This paper presents formal and informal institutions of contract enforcement, comparing their costs, benefits and efficiency. If a contract contains incentives for both (all) parties to fulfill their commitments (i.e., the way the agreement is formulated makes its execution more profitable than defection), the contract becomes self-enforcing – this type of contract is described in the first part of the paper. If at least one party prefers to breach the agreement (rather than fulfill her commitment), other parties will use some mechanisms to enforce it: informal institutions (part two) or formal ones (part three).

  • Issue Year: 2015
  • Issue No: 25
  • Page Range: 365-382
  • Page Count: 18
  • Language: Polish