Origins of the Canadian Law and Economics Association
The Canadian Law and Economics Association (CLEA) held its first annual conference in September 1990. It was an outgrowth of the Law and Economics Program started at the University of Toronto Faculty of Law in the 1970s through the leadership of Prof. Michael Trebilcock and then-Prof. Robert Prichard, with the support of Former Deans of the Faculty Martin Friedland, Robert Prichard, Frank Iacobucci and Ron Daniels.The CLEA annual conference was created in the hopes of fostering law and economics scholarship across Canada but has grown to attract presenters not only from Canada but around the world presenting on topics such as corporate and securities, property, judicial decision-making, tax, administrative law, contracts and environmental law. The annual meetings include a public lecture in law and economics which has been given by such prominent scholars as Avner Grief, Ian Ayres, Robert Ellickson, Henry Manne, Guido Calabresi, Michael Trebilcock, John Elster, Richard Epstein, Amartya Sen, Mancur Olsen, Nancy Gallini, John Helliwell and Ralph Winter. CLEA holds its annual conference each fall at the University of Toronto Faculty of Law.