The economics of law and the law of economics: An analysis for Turkey

One of the oldest publications analyzing the economics of law belongs to J. J. Rousseau. In his book "The Social Contract" (Du contrat social), Rousseauemphasizesthe constitution, which essentially lays the foundation of the state in terms of the laws that hold society together. In thisrespect, the constitution isintended to restrain the "government acting on behalf of the people."From this perspective, the constitution, as the fundamental law of society, ismeant to protect the people as a whole, rather than the government, and to "shield" themfrom the power of the government.we can understand.

Within a capitalistframework,if we reason, it is clear that in the book Rousseau began writing in 1756 and published in 1762,he was referring more to the economic wealth of those in powerand their associates than to the power of authority itself.BEmphasizing that inequality is at the root of all evil, political philosopher J. J. Rousseau stated,“No citizenshould be rich enough to buy another,and no citizenshould be poor enough to be forced to sell themselves,”thereby addressing the economics of lawandthe law of economics. summarized.

THE SITUATION IN TURKEY

When we lookfrom the perspective of Turkey, the economics of law is being eroded by the rise in inequality and the disappearance of the middle class.sacrificed for growthwe see that. Moreover, in the general analysis of service-driven growth, due to the problem of inflation measurement, we are faced with growth below the announced figure. Negative geven if we had encountered growth,the position of the workingclasseswould not have changed very much.Because the minimum wage and average wages remainbelow the national income per capita. The average dollar exchange rateIf we take the exchange rate as roughly 40 lira lastyear, the per capita national income of 17 thousand dollars averages monthly wages hovering above twenty thousand lira. This means thatinequality has risen veryhigh. One should look not only at the Gini coefficient, but also at theshare of the top 1 percent and top 10 percent of the population intotal income.

As for the law of economics... That can naturally be understood through the legal consequencesofcapitalist class relations. Rousseau did not delve into this subject in his book, but perhaps it is because he introduced the economics of law into political philosophy,thattoday,even though his name is used on the streets of France,in his own erawe know that he diedin loneliness.Onthe other hand, the law

of economics is stillan unfinishedhumanity project.International law and theThis is a subject that can be understoodnot onlythrough the eyes of an economist,but rather when examined through the eyes of a jurist and within a fairenvironment of debate. I do not know how much the problems that reached their peakwith the US under the Trump administration's refusal to recognize internationallaw will enter the index. However, in generalpastand presentsocialist practices have also failed to produce solutions in accordance with internationallaw. Today, the Rule of Law Index, known as the "World Justice Project (WJP) Rule of Law Index,"evaluatesthe principles of the rule of law with a score between 0 and 1.The index's fundamental criteria arelisted below.

1. Limitation of Government Powers:(Turkey ranks 136th in thisarea.)

2. Anti-corruption.

3. Open Government (Transparency).

4. Fundamental Rights (FTurkey ranks 134th in thisarea).

5. Order and Security.

6. Regulatory Enforcement.

7. Civil Justice.

8. Criminal Justice.

These eight headSince I do not have enough legal knowledge toformulate opinions on each of theseheadings, I can only comment in general terms and to the extent that they concern economics.

Turkeyranks118th out of 143 countries. TurkeyTurkey's, especially Limitation ofGovernment Powers and Fundamental Rights in critical categories, iswell below the worldaverageunder the pressure ofit is observed that it remains. This situationpoints to structural problemsregarding issues such as judicial independence and freedom ofexpression.This situation points to structuralproblems in areas such as judicial independence and freedom of expression. TAlthough Turkey ranks 118th in the generalranking, in the sub-category of "Fundamental Rights" (freedom of expression, etc.)itfalls to 134th placeout of 143 countries. This indicates that Tis the area where Turkey performs the worst.

ROUSSEAU AND THE CIVIL GOVERNMENT

1-Fundamental rights, the limit of the government's authority: I would like to draw attention to the relationship between Rousseau's idea that“the government is merely an official” and the criterion of “limitation ofgovernment powers” in the index. In this sense, it is noteworthy that there are shortcomings in the government's oversight,particularly regarding the audit of the Turkey Wealth Fund.These issues stand out.

We understood that the fundamental laws emphasized in Rousseau's social contractcould be made possible through the economics of a constitutional orderthat guarantees and encompassesfundamental rights. In a sense,the ruleof law isparamount.The weakening position in the indexis observed not since 2008, when the index began to be calculated, but from 2013to the presentday.In fact, in 2013, Turkey ranked 39th out of 97 countries,placing it in the top40 percentbracket.a relatively good "performance". However, in an unstablemanner the following year, in 2014, its legal performance droppedby 20placesatonce.is observed. Followingthat, in 2019, among 126 countries, it ranked109th, and 118th in 2025...

From an economicperspective,fundamental rights, thegovernment's scope of authoritythe limit and the corruption indexare observed to beeffectivewithin. For those curious, from a similar income group, Malaysia is in 54thplace, Brazil 52nd and South Africa is 57th inrank.

This means that in the law of economics, as far as it can be measured,theThere is a major problem, but this does not exonerate the economics of law;on the contrary, italso puts it in a difficult position.

THE IMPACT OF ECONOMIC INEQUALITY ON THELAW

2. General Will: It is important in terms of reflecting the influenceof the public's willonthe law. This will becomesdifficult as economicinequality increases.it.

Since it becomes difficult to build a legal system without economics, our room for maneuver is narrowing. From thatperspective, we can say that “a legal system that does not prioritize economics cannot sufficiently ensurejustice.” If we ask, “Does the economic situation face difficulties without law?” we see that it leads to inequality that would eliminate the middle class and to the volatility of foreign capital portfoliosto a significant extent.as much as it is with its "investments."

The global economy, which has evolved through financial crises in the past, is currently dealing with the IMF-World BankAs the BWI also acknowledges (BWI-at-80), it is grappling with inequality, the climate crisis, and public finance problems. Or rather, even if capital does not particularly care, it will be realized through an institutional structure thatwill come to theagenda with arestructuring.Of course, it is not that easy torealizethis...

TIn the history of Turkey, arethe First Constitutional Era in 1876 and the Second Constitutional Era in 1908 not efforts to establisha constitution? Although the Republic has made significant progress regarding fundamental rights, the situation in recent years is not veryencouraging.

Therefore, for a country whose legal system is in crisis, this is also a kind of crisisisn't it?

And the most difficult kind at that...