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This paper aims to offer a theory on optimal group size. To overcome the problems of institutional credit facilities to the poor and marginal people, Joint Liability Group Lending (JLGL) is often considered as a better option. However, the literature in the field is surprisingly silent about the issue of group-size. This paper tries to fill the vacuum in a theoretical framework.

Using a standard theoretical model, this paper shows that even with costless peer monitoring, there exists an upper bound on the size of group, and this upper bound is exactly pinned down by the strength of the social sanction.

This paper shows that under reasonable specification of effort cost, as group size increases, both optimal cooperative effort level and the deviation incentive from that effort level rise monotonically for any individual borrower. Thus, given the strength of social sanction, the rising incentive for deviation uniquely determines the optimal group size even in absence of free riding in peer monitoring.

The theoretical results derived in the paper require empirical verification which is, however, tricky because of the problems associated with quantifying social sanctions.

This paper argues that the group size should be larger in more integrated communities which have better social cohesion among its members.

This paper shows that, for a given extent of joint liability the borrowers need to bear, the group size in joint liability group lending should be designed according to the strength of social sanction prevailing in the society to achieve social efficiency.

This paper seeks to understand the evolution of financial intermediation in the course of China's economic transition.

The research is based on a unique data set collected by the authors and other collaborators from a 1998 survey of financial institutions, enterprises, and government officials in southern China.

Based on an empirical investigation of rural financial reforms, it is argued that China's two‐decade long financial reform was a gradual process that accommodates reforms in other sectors and responds to changing policy goals and the economic and institutional environment in which financial institutions operate. Although using standard measures of financial system performance may cast doubt on the effectiveness of China's rural banking system, when one understands the different roles that it has been asked to play, it can be argued that it has not operated so poorly.

In conclusion, it is found that China's rural economic environment is still changing. If the system continues to change in the future, responding to pressures in the economy, further financial reforms will almost certainly emerge in the coming years.

These findings, although primarily from the 1980s and 1990s, are still helpful in understanding the reform process that is currently ongoing.

This paper will help readers make sense of agricultural financial reforms and will allow for more discourse over what has been accomplished and what still is needed.

This is the first manuscript to comprehensively put China's rural financial reforms into the context of modern economic analysis, explaining why China's government proceeded as they did and why the reforms have unfolded in such a stop and start manner.

The purpose of the article is to show that the liability system established by Part 2A of the Environmental Protection Act 1990 is unfit for purpose because its mixture of joint and several liability and proportionate liability makes it impossible to implement and enforce effectively or efficiently as well as making it expensive to administer. The article aims to analyse the liability system and its effect on the implementation and enforcement of Part 2A.

A research approach was taken to examine and analyse Part 2A and the accompanying statutory guidance, and its implementation and enforcement. This approach included researching the liability system of Part 2A in depth, liability systems in other jurisdictions to compare and contrast with the liability system in Part 2A, publications by the UK Government on the progress of Part 2A, and commentaries on Part 2A and its progress.

The paper found that the liability system introduced by Part 2A is too complex to enforce effectively or efficiently. The article concludes that the result is a contaminated land regime that has failed to achieve its purpose in identifying land that poses a risk to human health and the environment and in remediating it.

The paper is the first paper to examine and critique the liability system in Part 2A and its implementation in depth and to suggest issues to consider in its revision so as to replace the regime with a regime that is fit for purpose.

Married couples receive tax benefits such as favorable tax rates, higher exclusions, higher phase-outs, and combined deductions. However, joint and several tax liability is a major issue facing these taxpayers. The term innocent spouse relief, within the Internal Revenue Code, is a direct result of one spouse failing to satisfy the joint liability for the married couple. Since both individuals are jointly and severally liable for the combined liability, the innocent spouse may be responsible for the liability in whole or in part. Our study examines this highly litigated arena of innocent spouse relief. To assist in this area of taxation, the Internal Revenue Service has provided taxpayers and tax practitioners with guidance. Revenue Procedure 2003-61 (2003-2 CB 296) outlines factors useful in determining whether innocent spouse relief should be granted. Additionally, this study creates a predictive model containing only three significant factors (economic hardship, knowledge/reason, significant benefit) capable of predicting with approximately 89% accuracy. These same three variables are significant after running multiple regression with p-values of 0.002 (economic hardship), 0.000 (knowledge/reason to know), and 0.001 (significant benefit). These factors provide valuable insight to practitioners when advising clients on challenging or accepting the Internal Revenue Service's decision. Additionally, abuse is marginally significant in the regression model. Also, judge gender and political affiliation are analyzed. However, the gender of the judge and political affiliation fail to be statistically significant using the chi-square test and regression model.

The purpose of this paper is to compare the capital system and governance of Mainland Chain with that of Taiwan.

This a comparative study drawing upon the main principles of the legal systems of China and Taiwan.

Due to historical, institutional social factors, the capital system of the Mainland China differs greatly from that of Taiwan. There is room for both sides across the Taiwan Straits to learn from each other by taking into consideration the respective features and deficiencies of their regulations.

The comparison and contrast study of the two capital systems helps them to improve respectively and boost economic development as well as legal construction.

The purpose of this paper is to highlight the issues and challenges in providing financing to the poor people based on the experience of Baitul Maal Wa Tamwil (BMT) in Indonesia.

A series of structured interviews were conducted with the chairman and staff of the Central BMT (Induk Koperasi Syariah) in Jakarta which is the head-quarter of 382 BMTs throughout Indonesia, with additional chairman and shari’ah supervisory in Central BMT (Pusat Koperasi Syariah) in Makasar. Subsequently, the results from the structured interviews were analyzed using qualitative analysis to arrive at the model of the peculiarities of financing the poor in Indonesia.

The findings show that the Central BMT has built specific products and empowerment mechanisms for the poor and has an ideal product to be applied in 382 BMT in Indonesia. There are two schemes of financing source in BMT, namely, social ministry (Kelompok Usaha Bersama) and private financing (national and international donor). Specifically, the peculiarities of financing given in BMT are not only in the term of capital but also in the term of providing infrastructure and training for the poor. Moreover, collateral must be provided as a screening process for the poor people to secure any form of financing. If there is no collateral, potential borrowers must opt for joint-liability financing. Furthermore, if the poor could not repay the financing, endowment coming from charity and compulsory Islamic tax (zakat, infaq and sadaqah) would play a vital role to cover for the financing default. Lastly, religious capacity building is also provided as a part of risk management aspect.

This study was only conducted in Indonesia which focussed on the peculiarities of financing for the poor people in Indonesia BMT. Despite this limitation, the findings of this study enable the construction of a model that highlights the issues and challenges that might arise in financing the poor in general.

The paper adds to the literature on Islamic microfinance by enabling researchers and practitioners to understand the model of Islamic microfinance in Indonesia. It also contributes toward enriching the knowledge in the Islamic microfinance area.

In healthcare, overuse and underuse of medical treatments represent equally dangerous deviations from an optimal use equilibrium and arouse concerns about possible implications for patients’ health, and for the healthcare system in terms of both costs and access to medical care. Medical liability plays a dominant role among the elements that can affect these deviations. Therefore, a remarkable economic literature studies how medical decisions are influenced by different levels of liability. In particular, identifying the relation between liability and treatments selection, as well as disentangling the effect of liability from other incentives that might be in place, is a task for sound empirical research. Several studies have already tried to tackle this issue, but much more needs to be done. In this chapter, we offer an overview of the state of the art in the study of the relation between liability and treatments selection. First, we reason on the theoretical mechanisms underpinning the relationship under investigation by presenting the main empirical predictions of the related literature. Second, we provide a comprehensive summary of the existing empirical evidence and its main weaknesses. Finally, we conclude by offering guidelines for further research.

The main issues arising from the considerations on latent defects liability in the Latham Committee consultation paper pertain to: joint and several liability; limitation periods and prescription of actions; and transfer of clients′ rights. The Government is reluctant to bring about compulsory insurance and this is considered justifiable. Discusses the reasons. It is considered that an improved voluntary system is the only and better way forward. Positive steps should be taken by the Government to put in place equitable conditions under which a voluntary and improved building users′ insurance against latent defects cover can emerge.

Changes in financial reporting information were an important part of the British transition from feudalism to capitalism, with statements showing cash surpluses or deficits being gradually superseded by income statements and balance sheets. The existing literature does not satisfactorily explain the (considerable) variations in the pattern of change in the early part of the transition, when information provision was largely determined by Parliamentary processes, and this paper aims to look to new evidence to strengthen and modify the existing theorisations.

The research design is to discuss and relate existing theories regarding the emergence of financial reporting information to newly discovered evidence on a substantial set of corporate formations between 1766 and 1840, during the early stages of financial (or managerial) capitalism.

Requirements to present accounts to shareholders were almost unknown before 1800 and became common only from the 1820s, usually in the form of (cash‐based) receipts and payments accounts, which enabled investors to determine the legitimacy of the dividend payments and would have enabled them to calculate a cash‐based version of the rate of return.

The paper provides new evidence on the patterns of company development and of corporate financial reporting across the formative years of financial capitalism.

The purpose of this paper is to explore the application of Kafalah in the practice of Islamic banking in Malaysia generally and ascertain applicable rules governing the application under relevant legislations and Shariah. The study also aims to examine the legislations in the light of Shariah provisions governing Kafalah and propose amendments.

This is a qualitative research where primary data sources mainly legislations and secondary sources comprising of articles and books on the subject of Kafalah were examined. It is an exploratory legal research that primarily focuses on library studies and adopts doctrinal approach for content analysis of data from the identified sources.

Kafalah is widely used in Islamic banking in Malaysia with primary or secondary application in structuring such products/services as personal guarantee, bank guarantee, Islamic credit card among others. The substantive law applicable to Kafalah in Islamic banking in Malaysia is the Contracts Act 1950 as decided cases indicate. However, provisions of the Act are at variance with rules of Shariah applicable to Kafalah on absolution of guaranteed debtor, multiple guarantors’ liability towards guaranteed sum as well as recourse and recovery from principal debtor.

This research explored the practice of Kafalah in Islamic banking under Malaysian legal framework based on the available literature. The research does not embody an empirical evaluation.

This research suggests, with respect to the identified issues, an amendment to the Act for clarification as follows: that recourse and recovery from principal debtor is only where creditor has requested guarantor to settle outstanding debt, that presence of surety does not absolve principal debtor from his original liability and that multiple guarantors stand as having equal responsibility towards guaranteed amount. The research findings will assist policy and law makers to harmonize the relevant laws with the Shariah to facilitate sustainable development of Islamic banking.