The ends and means of development --The rule of law and development: in search of the Holy Grail --The property rights/contract rights development nexus --Political regimes, ethnic conflict and development --Public administration, corruption and development --State-owned enterprises, privatization and development --International trade, foreign direct investment and development --Foreign aid and development: the aid-institutions paradox --In search of knowledge. ;This book focuses on the idea that institutions matter for development, asking what lessons we have learned from past reform efforts, and what role lawyers can play in this field. It provides a critical overview of different conceptions and theories of development, situating institutional theories within the larger academic debate on development. The book also discusses why, whether, and how institu