The Horse Before the Cart: The Necessity of the Right to Acquire Property to Property Rights

James W. Ely, Jr., Buchanan and the Right to Acquire Property, __ Cumberland L. Rev. __ (forthcoming), available at SSRN. Donald Kochan Can property rights really exist if we do not have a right to acquire property? When we hear about debates over property rights, they are often about the claims of people who already own property. The focus is on how owners can use property and what regulations the state can place on the use of one’s property. We often lose sight of perhaps a more fundamental set of questions about how we protect, facilitate, and pave the way for earning the means for the acquisition of property. Only if one can acquire property do any of those other questions even matter. We first need to ensure that people have an equal opportunity to acquire property and become owners. Property rights issues related to possession and use only becoming relevant thereafter. Professor James Ely’s recent work, Buchanan and the Right to Acquire Property,…

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