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James Mirrlees
Economist

James Mirrlees

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Explaining incentives and taxation when information is unequal.

Optimal taxation · Diamond–Mirrlees theorem

Born
5 July 1936
Birthplace
Minnigaff
Died
29 August 2018

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James Mirrlees

James Mirrlees was a British economist whose research helped explain how policy can work when people hold information that others cannot observe.

Early life

Education

Studied mathematics and natural philosophy at Edinburgh before completing a Cambridge doctorate in 1963.

Career

  1. 1968

    Oxford

    Became Edgeworth Professor of Economics.

  2. 1995

    Cambridge

    Returned to Cambridge as professor of political economy.

  3. 1996

    Nobel recognition

    Shared the economics prize with William Vickrey.

Selected work

Optimal taxation

Developed influential models of income taxation and incentives.

Diamond–Mirrlees theorem

Worked with Peter Diamond on production efficiency and taxation.

Beyond work

Public service

Served on Scotland’s Council of Economic Advisers and led the Institute for Fiscal Studies’ review of the UK tax system.

Sources & photo creditBiography and career ↗Biographical references ↗

Original photograph. Cropped and displayed in monochrome.

Photo: Trinity College Cambridgeshire. Source credit retained; reuse licence not established · Original image. Cropped and displayed in monochrome.