Divorce

Posted: 21 Aug 1998

See all articles by Robert H. Mnookin

Robert H. Mnookin

Harvard Law School; Program on Negotiation

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Abstract

Divorce law provides the framework that governs the circumstances under which a marriage may be brought to an end and spouses are free to remarry. Divorce law also governs a number of distributional questions that arise on dissolution: (1) How should a couple's existing stock of wealth be divided? (Marital property law); (2) What ongoing claims should each spouse have on the future earnings of the other spouse? (Alimony or spousal support law); (3) What ongoing claims should a child have for a share of the earnings or wealth of each parent (Child support law); and (4) How should the responsibilities and opportunities of child rearing be divided between the parents in the future? (Child custody and visitation law). This essay describes the revolutionary changes in this legal framework and exposes a variety of questions that law and economics scholarship has raised about the behavioral incentives and distributional consequences of divorce law.

JEL Classification: D10

Suggested Citation

Mnookin, Robert H., Divorce. Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=117130

Robert H. Mnookin (Contact Author)

Harvard Law School ( email )

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Program on Negotiation ( email )

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