The Enterprise of Law: Justice Without the State

Defenders of the state’s monopoly on lawmaking and law enforcement typically assume that any alternative arrangement would favor the rich at the expense of the poor—or would lead to the collapse of social order and ignite a war. Questioning how well these beliefs hold up to scrutiny, this book offers a powerful rebuttal of the received view of the relationship between law and government.

The provision of justice and security has long been linked in most people’s minds to the exclusive provin...