Abstract
The possibility of collective action is essential to human freedom. Yet, as Rousseau
famously argued, individuals acting together allow themselves to depend on one
another’s choices and thereby jeopardize one another’s freedom. These two facts
jointly constitute what I call the normative problem of collective action. I argue that
solving this problem is harder than it looks. It cannot be done merely in terms of
moral obligations; indeed, it ultimately requires putting in place a full-fledged system
of contract rights. The point has important ramifications for contract theory. The role
that contract rights play in reconciling collective action and freedom turns out to
be crucial to understanding how—and by whom—these rights can legitimately be
enforced. It also explains why expectation damages should be the standard remedy
for breach of contract.