Fair Division
From Cake-Cutting to Dispute Resolution

A careful analysis of the abstract properties that different procedures satisfy; e.g. envy-freeness and efficiency.

Steven J. Brams (Author), Alan D. Taylor (Author)

9780521556446, Cambridge University Press

Paperback, published 23 February 1996

288 pages
22.9 x 15.3 x 1.6 cm, 0.43 kg

'… explains everything a layperson might need to know about fair division … lawyers should love the book'. Discover

Cutting a cake, dividing up the property in an estate, determining the borders in an international dispute - such problems of fair division are ubiquitous. Fair Division treats all these problems and many more through a rigorous analysis of a variety of procedures for allocating goods (or 'bads' like chores), or deciding who wins on what issues, when there are disputes. Starting with an analysis of the well-known cake-cutting procedure, 'I cut, you choose', the authors show how it has been adapted in a number of fields and then analyze fair-division procedures applicable to situations in which there are more than two parties, or there is more than one good to be divided. In particular they focus on procedures which provide 'envy-free' allocations, in which everybody thinks he or she has received the largest portion and hence does not envy anybody else. They also discuss the fairness of different auction and election procedures.

Introduction
1. Proportionality for n=2
2. Proportionality for n>2: the divisible case
3. Proportionality for n>2: the indivisible case
4. Envy-freeness and equitability for n=2
5. Applications for the point-allocation procedures
6. Envy-free procedures for n=3 and n=4
7. Envy-free procedures for arbitrary n
8. Divide-the-dollar
9. Fair division by auctions
10. Fair divisions by elections
11. Conclusions
Glossary
Bibliography
Index.

Subject Areas: Economic theory & philosophy [KCA]