Ronald Coase, who published the ‘Coase Theorem’, defined the role of regulation in the economy in a paper ‘The problem of Social Cost’. The paper supported  a free market and a hands-off approach by regulators, politicians and the judiciary to business. It was said to be the most cited law review article ever, according to the Michigan Law Review.

Free markets rule

Professor Coase argued against government intervention to stop companies or parties from causing harm to others.
He believed that, armed with the right information, victims could reach satisfactory solutions which made more economic sense. According to the New York Times,  He made the idea of property rights fundamental to understanding the role of regulation in the economy.He won a Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Science in 1991.
Professor Coase, who was British and taught law at the University of Chicago, died aged 102.