Economic analysis of law and its application in setting the boundaries of damage
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.46282/afi.2026.1.05Keywords:
damage, efficiency, fixed model, relative model, economic analysis of lawAbstract
The article examines economic analysis of law, with particular emphasis on its application in criminal law. The study explores the use of economic approaches in the creation, interpretation, and evaluation of legal norms aimed at maximizing social welfare and the overall efficiency of the legal system. The author applies these principles to the analysis of models for determining the amount of damage as a qualifying element of criminal offenses. Special attention is devoted to the comparison of two approaches to setting damage thresholds: a system of fixed statutory amounts and an alternative relative model linked to dynamic economic indicators. Each model is assessed through the lens of cost–benefit analysis. From the perspective of economic efficiency, the article argues that the primary challenge does not lie in the fixed model itself, but rather in the absence of a mechanism for its systematic reassessment in light of economic developments. The article thus highlights the value of economic analysis in legislative design and opens a discussion on the adequacy of the current regulation of damage thresholds in Slovak criminal law.
References
1. BECKER, G. S. Crime and Punishment: An Economic Approach. Journal of Political Economy, 1968, roč. 76, č. 2, s. 169–217. Dostupné online: https://www.jstor.org/stable/1830482 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1086/259394 (cit. dňa 8. 11. 2025)
2. BELEŠ, A., HANGÁČOVÁ, N. Vývoj právnej úpravy hranice minimálnej škody. In: Notitia Iudiciales Academie Collegii Aedilium in Bratislava, Bratislava: Akadémia Policajného zboru v Bratislave, 2019, roč. 5, č. 1, s. 10.
3. BLAŽKOVÁ, K. Maškarová hovorí o poklese kriminality, starostovia chcú prísnejšie tresty, ľudia sa necítia bezpečne. Startitup.sk, 2025. Dostupné online: https://www.startitup.sk/maskarova-hovori-o-poklese-kriminality-starostovia-chcu-prisnejsie-tresty-ludia-sa-necitia-bezpecne/ (cit. dňa 26. 1. 2026)
4. BROWN, D. Cost-Benefit Analysis in Criminal Law. California Law Review, 2004, roč. 92, č. 2, s. 325-371. Dostupné online : http://www.jstor.org/stable/3481427 DOI: https://doi.org/10.2307/3481427 (cit. dňa 15.5.2025)
5. BROULÍK, J. Nedorozumění o ekonomické analýze práva. Právník, 2015, roč. 154, č. 5, s. 361–377. Dostupné online: https://www.ilaw.cas.cz/upload/web/files/pravnik/issues/2015/5/1.Broul%C3%ADk_5_2015.pdf (cit. dňa 8. 11. 2025)
6. COOTER, R., ULEN, T. Law and Economics. 6. vyd. Boston: Pearson Education, 2012, 570 s. Dostupné online: https://anyflip.com/dvfsu/naxl/basic/451-500 ISBN 978-0-13-254065-0 (cit. dňa 8. 11. 2025)
7. ČENTÉŠ, J., VOJTUŠ, F. Efektívnosť práva a prístupy k jej skúmaniu. In: Efektívnosť prípravného konania – jej skúmanie, výzvy a perspektívy: Zborník z medzinárodnej vedeckej konferencie, Bratislava: Univerzita Komenského v Bratislave, Právnická fakulta, 2020, 14 s. ISBN 978-80-571-0547-3
8. HAREL, A., SEGAL, U. Criminal Law and Behavioral Law and Economics: Observations on the Neglected Role of Uncertainty in Deterring Crime. American Law and Economics Review, 1999, roč. 1, č. 2, s. 276 – 312. Dostupné online: https://biblioteca.cejamericas.org/bitstream/handle/2015/1661/behavioral-law-economics.pdf DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/aler/1.1.276 (cit. dňa 8. 11. 2025)
9. HARNEY, S., MARCIANO, A. Posner, economics and the law: from law and economics to an economic analysis of law. In: Journal of the History of Economic Thought, Université Paris Ouest Nanterre La Défense; Université de Reims Champagne Ardenne, 2008, 21 s. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/s1053837209090208
10. FAMULSKI, T. Economic efficiency in economic analysis of law. In: Finanse i Prawo Finansowe, 2017, vol. 3(15), 13 s. DOI: https://doi.org/10.18778/2391-6478.3.15.03
11. FISHER, T. Economic Analysis of Criminal Law. In: DUBBER, M. D., HÖRNLE, T. (eds.). The Oxford Handbook of Criminal Law. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2014, s. 885–913. (cit. dňa 8. 11. 2025) DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/oxfordhb/9780199673599.013.0003
12. JELÍNEK, J. Majetková škoda v československém trestním právu. Acta Universitatis Carolinae Iuridica, 1990, roč. 36, č. 4, s. 23–41. Dostupné online: https://www.prf.cuni.cz/sites/default/files/soubory/2025-06/AUCI_4_1990.pdf DOI: https://doi.org/10.14712/23366478.2025.305 (cit. dňa 8. 11. 2025)
13. JOLLS, C., SUNSTEIN, C. R., THALER, R. H. A Behavioral Approach to Law and Economics. Stanford Law Review, 1998, roč. 50, s. 1471–1550. Dostupné online: https://chicagounbound.uchicago.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=12172&context=journal_articles DOI: https://doi.org/10.2307/1229304 (cit. dňa 8. 11. 2025)
14. KRUTKOVÁ, E. Škoda v Trestnom zákone v kontexte ekonomického vývoja a subsidiarity trestnej represie. Právne listy, 2024. Dostupné online: https://www.pravnelisty.sk/clanky/a1358-skoda-v-trestnom-zakone-v-kontexte-ekonomickeho-vyvoja-a-subsidiarity-trestnej-represie (cit. dňa 8. 11. 2025)
15. MCADAMS, R., ULEN, T. Behavioral Criminal Law and Economics. In: DE GEEST, G. (ed.). Encyclopedia of Law and Economics. Cheltenham, 2011, 34 s. Dostupné online: https://www.elgaronline.com/view/nlm-book/9781781950210/chapter16.xml DOI: https://doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.1299963 (cit. dňa 15. 5. 2025)
16. POLINSKY, M., SHAVELL, S. Law, Economic Analysis of. In: DURLAUF, S. N. – BLUME, L. E. (eds.). The New Palgrave Dictionary of Economics. Basingstoke, 2008, 19 s. Dostupné online: https://law.stanford.edu/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/Polinsky-Shavell2008_ReferenceWorkEntry_LawEconomicAnalysisOf.pdf DOI: https://doi.org/10.1057/978-1-349-95121-5_2440-1 (cit. dňa 15. 5. 2025)
17. POSNER, R. A. Economic Analysis of Law. 9. vyd. New York: Aspen Publishers, 2014, s. 25 a nasl. Dostupné online: https://www.scribd.com/document/643067429/POSNER-Richard-Economic-Analysis-of-Law-Ninth-Edition-pdf DOI: https://doi.org/10.2307/1227682 (cit. dňa 8. 11. 2025)
18. SOLČANSKÁ, A. Podstata a význam škody vo vybraných právnych odvetviach. Studia Iuridica Cassoviensia, 2015, roč. 3, č. 1, 10 s. Dostupné online: https://sic.pravo.upjs.sk/files/7_solcanska_-_skoda1.pdf ISSN 1339-3995 (cit. dňa 8. 11. 2025)
19. ULEN, T. S. Rational Choice Theory in Law and Economics. In: BOUCKAERT, B. – DE GEEST, G. (eds.). Encyclopedia of Law and Economics. Cheltenham: Edward Elgar, 1999, s. 790 a nasl. Dostupné online: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/228184443_Rational_choice_theory_in_law_and_economics (cit. dňa 15. 5. 2025)
20. VRTÍKOVÁ, K., MOKRÁ, I. K možnej zmene spôsobu určenia výšky škody v Trestnom zákone. In: Bulletin slovenskej advokácie, Bratislava: Slovenská advokátska komora, 2024. Dostupné online: https://info.sak.sk/bulletin/k-moznej-zmene-sposobu-urcenia-vysky-skody-v-trestnom-zakone/ (cit. dňa 15. 5. 2025)
21. ZÁBOJNÍKOVÁ, A. Kriminalita v Bratislave prudko rastie. Samospráva žiada zmeny v legislatíve a viac štátnych policajtov. Denník N, 2025. Dostupné online: https://dennikn.sk/4896143/kriminalita-v-bratislave-prudko-rastie-samosprava-ziada-zmeny-v-legislative-a-viac-statnych-policajtov/ (cit. dňa 26. 1. 2026)
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2026 Comenius: Acta Facultatis Iuridicae Universitatis Comenianae
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.
