Importance of the Center

The Center is unique in its concern for property in all of its forms and in its examination of the socio-legal relationship of property to law, markets, and culture. Property is one of the most important and hotly debated concepts in the global marketplace. Developed countries are exporting institutional infrastructure for the support of power relationships embedded in their own property law systems, and developing and transitional economies are struggling to find the appropriate mix of public and private property to meet their own particular needs. Global financial networks, international treaties, and complex litigation connect the world in a struggle to identify workable and fair conceptions of property. Our Center will take a leadership role in identifying important issues in property law and suggesting reform.