This study covers property law and property rights, providing a full summary and comprehensive bibliography of the existing law, together with discussion from an economic perspective on the most important aspects of property law. Leading experts have brought together their knowledge and insight on a full range of issues - including comparative property law and the history of property law - to create a truly autonomous interdisciplinary resource. This essential reference work will strongly appeal to scholars and students enrolled in academic programmes of law and economics. Academic lawyers inv. Read more... Cover; Copyright; Contents; Contributors; 1 Introduction; 2 Property rights in legal history; 3 Property rights: a comparative view; 4 Private and common property rights; 5 Original assignment of private property; 6 Decomposition of property rights; 7 Nuisance; 8 Adverse possession; 9 Title systems and recordation of interests; 10 The economics of slavery; 11 New forms of private property: property rights in environmental goods; 12 Security interests, creditors' priorities, and bankruptcy; Index