OLIVER S. (D'ARCY) HART
Born October 9, l948
British Citizen
EDUCATION
Princeton University Ph.D. in Economics l974
Warwick University M.A. in Economics l972
Cambridge University (King's College) B.A. in Mathematics l969
FELLOWSHIPS AND HONORS
-
Fellow, Econometric Society, l979
- Guggenheim Fellowship, l987-88
- Fellow, American Academy of Arts and Sciences, l988
- Fisher-Schultze Lecturer, Econometric Society, l988
- Hooker Lecturer, McMaster University, l985
- Woodward Lecturer, University of British Columbia, l99l
- National Science Foundation grants, l986-l995
- Doctor, Honoris Causa, Free University of Brussels, l992
- Clarendon Lecturer, Oxford University, l993
- Honorary Doctor of Philosophy, University of Basel, Switzerland, l994
- Wellington Burnham Lecturer, Tufts University, 1994
PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE
Academic Positions
- 1997- Andrew E. Furer Professor of Economics, Harvard University
- l993-97 Professor of Economics, Harvard University
- l992-93 BP Visiting Centennial Professor, London School of Economics
- l985-93 Professor of Economics, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
- l988-89 Marvin Bower Fellow, Harvard Business School
- l987-88 Visiting Scholar, Harvard Law School
- l984-85 Visiting Professor of Economics, MIT
- l98l-85 Professor of Economics, London School of Economics
- l979-80 Visiting Senior Lecturer, Wharton School, University of
Pennsylvania
- l975-8l Assistant Lecturer and then Lecturer in Economics, University of
Cambridge
- l975-8l Fellow of Churchill College, University of Cambridge
- l974-75 Lecturer in Economics, University of Essex
Nonacademic Positions
- 1997- Associate Editor, Journal of Economic Perspectives
- 1996- Member, Advisory Board, The New Palgrave Dictionary of Economics and the Law
- 1995- Associate Editor, Quarterly Journal of Economics
- l990- Research Associate, National Bureau of Economic Research
- l989- Member, Advisory Council, Princeton University Economics Dept.
- l987-89 Member of National Science Foundation Economics Panel
- l984-87 At-large member, Executive Committee, Econometric Society
- l983-89, l994- Council Member, Econometric Society
- l984-90 Editorial Advisory Board, Cambridge Surveys of Economic
Literature, Cambridge University Press
- l99l-93 Standing Committee, New York University, Japan-U.S. Business
and Economic Studies Technical Symposium
- l99l- Editorial Board, Journal of Economics and Management Strategy
- l989- Associate Editor, Journal of Accounting, Auditing, and Finance
- l988-93 Associate Editor, Games and Economic Behavior
- l984-87 Associate Editor, Econometrica
- l975-88 Editorial Advisory Board, Review of Economic Studies
- l983-84 Programme Director, Centre for Economic Policy Research, London
- l980 Member of Program Committee, Fourth World Congress of the
Econometric Society
- l979-83 Editor, Review of Economic Studies
- l978-79 Assistant Editor, Review of Economic Studies
- l976-79 Associate Editor, Journal of Economic Theory
- l975-79 Coordinating Committee, Social Science Research Council Economic
Theory Study Group, U.K.
FIELDS OF INTEREST
Economic Theory
Mathematical Economics
Theory of the Firm
Law and Economics
PROFESSIONAL ORGANIZATIONS
Econometric Society
American Economic Association
PUBLICATIONS
Books
Firms, Contracts, and Financial Structure. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1995.
Chapters in Books
- "Take-Over Bids, the Managerial Theory of the Firm and the Free Rider Problem" (with S. Grossman) in
D. Currie and W. Peters, eds., Contemporary Economic Analysis, Vol. 2 (London: Croom Helm, l980).
- "Corporate Financial Structure and Managerial Incentives" (with S. Grossman) in J. McCall, ed., The
Economics of Information and Uncertainty (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, l982) Chap. 4.
- "Economic Fluctuations with an Imperfectly Competitive Labour Market" in Proceedings of Conference
on "Recent Developments of Macroeconomic Theories" held in Florence (May l980) (Oxford: Oxford University
Press, l984).
- "Imperfect Competition in General Equilibrium: An Overview of Recent Work" in K. Arrow and S.
Honkapohja, eds., Frontiers of Economics (Oxford: Basil Blackwell, l985).
- "Incomplete Contracts" in J. Eatwell, P. Newman and M. Milgate, eds., The New Palgrave, (Macmillan
Press, London, l987).
- "Vertical Integration and the Distribution of Property Rights" (with S. Grossman) in A. Razin and E.
Sadka, eds., Economic Policy in Theory and Practice, (Macmillan Press, London, l987).
- "The Theory of Contracts" (with B. Holmstrom) in T. Bewley, ed., Advances in Economic Theory, Fifth
World Congress (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, l987).
- "Vertical Integration and Market Foreclosure" (with J. Tirole), Brookings Papers on Economic Activity,
Microeconomics (l990).
- "Production Fluctuations and Fiscal Policy in an Economy with Aggregate and Idiosyncratic Shocks"
(with E. Maskin), Economic Analysis of Markets and Games, Essays in Honor of Frank Hahn, edited by Dasgupta,
Gale, Hart and Maskin, MIT Press, Cambridge, MA, l992.
- "Theories of Optimal Capital Structure: A Managerial Discretion Perspective," in The Deal Decade: What
Takeovers and Leveraged Buyouts Mean for Corporate Governance, Margaret Blair (ed.), The Brookings
Institution, Washington, DC (l993).
- "The Meaning of 'Ownership,'" a discussion, in Margaret M. Blair, Wealth Creation and Wealth Sharing
(Washington, DC: The Brookings Institution, 1996).
Papers in Journals
- "On the Application of Portfolio Theory to Depository Financial Intermediaries" (with D. M. Jaffee),
Review of Economic Studies 4l (January l974) l29-l47.
- "On the Existence of Equilibrium in a Securities Model," Journal of Economic Theory 9 (November l974)
293-3ll. Reprinted in Temporary Equilibrium Selected Readings, Jean-Michel Grandmont (ed.), Academic Press,
Inc., San Diego, CA (l988).
- "Some Negative Results on the Existence of Comparative Statics Properties in Portfolio Theory," Review
of Economic Studies 42 (October l975) 6l5-62l. [See also Review of Economic Studies, October l989.]
- "A Proof of the Existence of Equilibrium Without the Free Disposal Assumption" (with H. W. Kuhn),
Journal of Mathematical Economics 2 (December l975) 335-343.
- "On the Optimality of Equilibrium when the Market Structure is Incomplete," Journal of Economic
Theory ll (December l975) 4l8-443. Reprinted in General Equilibrium Theory Vol. II, Gérard Debreu (ed.),
Edward Elgar Publishing Ltd., 1996.
- "On the Profitability of Speculation," Quarterly Journal of Economics 9l (November l977) 579-597.
- "Take-Over Bids and Stock Market Equilibrium," Journal of Economic Theory l6 (October l977) 53-83.
Reprinted in Financial Markets and Incomplete Information, S. Bhattacharya and G. Constantinides (eds.),
Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc., l989.
- "A Theory of Competitive Equilibrium in Stock Market Economies" (with S. Grossman), Econometrica 47
(March l979) 293-329.
- "Monopolistic Competition in a Large Economy with Differentiated Commodities," Review of Economic
Studies 46 (January l979) l-30.
- "On Shareholder Unanimity in Large Stock Market Economies," Econometrica 47 (September l979) l057-l083.
- "Take-Over Bids, the Free Rider Problem and the Theory of the Corporation" (with S. Grossman), Bell
Journal of Economics and Management Science ll (Spring l980) 42-64; partially reprinted in Posner and Scott,
eds., Economics of Corporation Law and Securities Regulation.
- "Perfect Competition and Optimal Product Differentiation," Symposium on Noncooperative Approaches to
Perfect Competition, Journal of Economic Theory 22 (April l980) 279-3l2.
- "Disclosure Laws and Take-Over Bids" (with S. Grossman), Journal of Finance 35 (May l980) 323-334.
- "Implicit Contracts, Moral Hazard, and Unemployment" (with S. Grossman), American Economic
Review, Papers and Proceedings 7l (May l98l) 30l-307.
- "The Allocational Role of Takeover Bids in Situations of Asymmetric Information" (with S. Grossman),
Journal of Finance 36 (May l98l) 253-270.
- "A Model of Imperfect Competition with Keynesian Features," Quarterly Journal of Economics 97
(February l982) l09-l38. Reprinted in Temporary Equilibrium Selected Readings, Jean-Michel Grandmont (ed.),
Academic Press, Inc., San Diego, CA. (l988). Reprinted in New Keynesian Economics: Coordination Failures and
Real Rigidities, N. Gregory Mankiw and David Romer (eds.), Vol. l, MIT Press, Cambridge, MA (l99l). To be
reprinted in Macroeconomics and Imperfect Competition, Jean-Pascal Benassy (ed.), Edward Elgar Publishing Ltd.
- "Monopolistic Competition in a Large Economy with Differentiated Commodities: A Correction," Review
of Economic Studies 49 (April l982) 3l3-3l4.
- "An Analysis of the Principal-Agent Problem" (with S. Grossman), Econometrica (January l983) 7-46.
Reprinted in Foundations of Insurance Economics, G. Dionne and S.E. Harrington (eds.), Kluwer Academic
Publishers, l992.
- "Implicit Contracts Under Asymmetric Information" (with S. Grossman), Quarterly Journal of Economics
98 (Supplement l983) l23-l56. Reprinted in Implicit Contract Theory, Sherwin Rosen (ed.), Edward Elgar
Publishing Ltd, l994.
- "Optimal Labour Contracts under Asymmetric Information: An Introduction," Review of Economic
Studies 50 (January l983) l-35. Reprinted in Implicit Contract Theory, Sherwin Rosen (ed.), Edward Elgar
Publishing Ltd, l994.
- "The Market Mechanism As an Incentive Scheme," Bell Journal of Economics l4 (Autumn l983) 366-382.
- "Unemployment with Observable Aggregate Shocks" (with S. Grossman and E. Maskin), Journal of
Political Economy 9l (December l983) 907-928.
- "Welfare Losses Due to Imperfect Competition: Asymptotic Results for Cournot-Nash Equilibria with and
without Free Entry" (with R. Guesnerie), International Economic Review, Vol. 26, No. 3 (October l985).
- "Monopolistic Competition in the Spirit of Chamberlin: A General Model," Review of Economic Studies
LII (November l985).
- "Monopolistic Competition in the Spirit of Chamberlin: Special Results," Economic Journal 95
(December l985). Reprinted in The Economics of Product Differentiation, J. Thisse and G. Norman (eds.), Edward
Elgar Publishing Ltd, l994.
- "The Costs and Benefits of Ownership: A Theory of Vertical and Lateral Integration" (with S. Grossman),
Journal of Political Economy (August l986). Reprinted in Industrial Organization, O. Williamson (ed.), Edward
Elgar Publishing Ltd, l990. To be reprinted in Transaction Cost Economics, O. Williamson and S. Masten (eds.),
Edward Elgar Publishing Ltd.
- "Price Destabilizing Speculation" (with D. Kreps), Journal of Political Economy, (October l986).
- "One Share/One Vote and the Market for Corporate Control" (with S. Grossman), Journal of Financial
Economics, l988.
- "Incomplete Contracts and the Theory of the Firm," Journal of Law, Economics and Organization, Vol.
4(l), (Spring l988). Reprinted in The Nature of the Firm: Origins, Evolution, and Development, Oliver
Williamson and Sidney Winter (eds.), Oxford University Press (l99l).
- "Incomplete Contracts and Renegotiation" (with J. Moore), Econometrica 56(4) (July l988).
- "Contract Renegotiation and Coasian Dynamics (with J. Tirole), Review of Economic Studies LV (July
l988).
- "Capital Structure As a Control Mechanism in Corporations," Canadian Journal of Economics XXI(3)
(August l988).
- "Bargaining and Strikes," Quarterly Journal of Economics CIV (February l989). Reprinted in Economic
Models of Trade Unions, T. Khalidson (ed.), Chapman & Hall Ltd, l992.
- "An Economist's Perspective on the Theory of the Firm," Columbia Law Review, November l989.
Reprinted in Organization Theory: From Chester Barnard to the Present and Beyond, Oliver Williamson (ed.),
Oxford University Press (l990). Reprinted in The Managerial Economics Reader, Douglas J. Lamdin (ed.), Kolb
Publishing Company, Miami, FL, l994. Reprinted in Firms, Organizations and Contracts, Peter J. Buckley and
Jonathan Michie (eds.), Oxford University Press, 1996. Partially reprinted in The Economic Nature of the Firm, L.
Putterman and R. Kroszner (eds.), Cambridge University Press, 1996.
- "Property Rights and the Nature of the Firm" (with J. Moore), Journal of Political Economy, Vol. 98(6)
(l990). To be reprinted in Transaction Cost Economics, O. Williamson and S. Masten (eds.), Edward Elgar
Publishing Ltd.
- "Is 'Bounded Rationality' an Important Element of a Theory of Institutions?" Journal of Institutional and
Theoretical Economics (December l990).
- "The Economics of Bankruptcy Reform" (with P. Aghion and J. Moore), Journal of Law, Economics and
Organization 8(3) (l992).
- "An Economist's View of Fiduciary Duty," University of Toronto Law Journal 43 (l993) 299-3l3.
- "A Proposal for Bankruptcy Reform in the U.K.," (with P. Aghion and J. Moore), Insolvency Law &
Practice 9(4) (l993) l03-l08.
- "A Theory of Debt Based on the Inalienability of Human Capital" (with J. Moore), Quarterly Journal of
Economics, l09(4) (l994) 84l-79.
- "Improving Bankruptcy Procedure" (with P. Aghion and J. Moore), Washington University Law
Quarterly, 72(3) (l994) 849-72.
- "Debt and Seniority: An Analysis of the Role of Hard Claims in Constraining Management" (with J.
Moore), American Economic Review, 85(3) (l995) 567-85.
- "Corporate Governance: Some Theory and Implications," The Economic Journal 105 (1995) 678-89.
- "Insolvency Reform in the U.K.: A Revised Proposal" (with P. Aghion and J. Moore), Insolvency Law and
Practice 11 (1995) 4-11.
- "An Economist's View of Authority," Rationality and Society, 8(4) (1996) 371-86.
- "The Governance of Exchanges: Members' Cooperatives Versus Outside Ownership" (with J. Moore),
Oxford Review of Economic Policy 12(4) (l996) 53-69.
- "A New Bankruptcy Procedure That Uses Multiple Auctions" (with R. La Porta Drago, F. Lopez-de-Silanes, and J. Moore), European Economic Review, Papers and Proceedings 41(3-5) (April 1997) 461-73.
COMMENTS
- "Comment on Joseph Stiglitz's Paper: 'Risk, Incentives and Insurance: The Pure Theory of Moral
Hazard,'" The Geneva Papers on Risk and Insurance (January l983).
- Comment on "Corporate Governance and Market Structure," by R. Willig in A. Razin and E. Sadka, eds.,
Economic Policy in Theory and Practice, Macmillan Press, London, l987.
- Comment on "Credit Rationing and Collateral" by J. Stiglitz and A. Weiss in Recent Developments in
Corporate Finance, J. Edwards, J. Franks, C. Mayer, and S. Schaefer, eds., Cambridge University Press, l986.
- Comment on "Characteristics of Targets of Hostile and Friendly Takeovers" by R. Morck, A. Shleifer, and
R. Vishny in Corporate Takeovers: Causes and Consequences, A.J. Auerbach, ed., University of Chicago Press,
l988.
- Comments on papers by Neild, Mueller, and Odagiri in Economics in Disarray, P. Wiles and G. Routh,
eds., Blackwell, l984.
- Comment on paper by Willig in Economic Policy in Theory and Practice, A. Razin and E. Sadka (eds.),
Macmillan, l987.
- Comment on paper by Halperin and Maindiratta in Journal of Accounting, Auditing, and Finance, l989.
- Comment on "The Changing Nature of Debt and Equity: A Financial Perspective" by Franklin Allen, in
Are the Distinctions between Debt and Equity Disappearing? Federal Reserve Bank of Boston conference volume,
l989.
- "Comment on Wijkander," Nobel Symposium, No. 77, Contracts: Determinants, Properties and
Implications, in Contract Economics, L. Werin and H. Wijkander (eds.), Blackwell, l992.
- "Panel Discussion," Nobel Symposium, No. 77, Contracts: Determinants, Properties and Implications, in
Contract Economics, L. Werin and H. Wijkander (eds.), Blackwell, l992.
WORKING PAPERS
- "Proposal for a New Bankruptcy Procedure in Russia" (with R. LaPorta,
F. Lopez-de-Silanes, and J. Moore), 1995.
- "Proposal for a New Bankruptcy Procedure in Emerging Markets" (with R. LaPorta, F. Lopez-de-Silanes,
and J. Moore), 1996
- "Default and Renegotiation: A Dynamic Model of Debt" (with J. Moore), January 1997.
- "The Proper Scope of Government: Theory and an Application to Prisons" (with A. Shleifer and R. W.
Vishny), forthcoming in Quarterly Journal of Economics, November 1997.
- "Residual Rights of Control," forthcoming in The New Palgrave Dictionary of Economics and the Law,
1997.
MISCELLANEOUS
- Article in The Wall Street Journal on SECs One Share-One Vote Decision, July l4, l988.
- Article in Financial Times on Bankruptcy Reform, "The Beauty of a Vote," March 2, l993.
- Article in The Wall Street Journal on Bankruptcy Reform, ". . . and an Alternative to Chapter ll," January
l9, l994.