An Austrian economist led early MPS opposition to intellectual property law.

Evidence

Perhaps the most influential critic of IP from the neoliberal world—and one who did not take the later turn on patents that Chicago School economists did—was the Austrian economist Fritz Machlup, a fellow member of Mises’s seminar with Hayek in 1920s Vienna and also a founding member of the MPS. — Dieter Plehwe, Quinn Slobodian & Philip Mirowski (eds.), Nine Lives of Neoliberalism, 182

Categorization

• XREF: Connects to the chapter-level theme of fracturing the monolithic ‘neoliberalism’ picture — Austrian vs Chicago splits on patents echo the internal-varieties reading purpose. — connects to: Early MPS economists argued competition, not patents, incentivizes innovation. — Dieter Plehwe, Quinn Slobodian & Philip Mirowski (eds.), Nine Lives of Neoliberalism, 183; Hayek personally opposed strong intellectual property despite his followers endorsing it — Philip Mirowski & Dieter Plehwe (eds.), The Road from Mont Pèlerin: The Making…, 2191; Early MPS neoliberals favored weaker patent rights over stronger ones — Dieter Plehwe, Quinn Slobodian & Philip Mirowski (eds.), Nine Lives of Neoliberalism, 183 (+1 more)

Broader Connections

• Hayek personally opposed strong intellectual property despite his followers endorsing it #expands (0.90) — Philip Mirowski & Dieter Plehwe (eds.), The Road from Mont Pèlerin, 2191
• Early MPS neoliberals favored weaker patent rights over stronger ones #corroborates (0.85) — Dieter Plehwe, Quinn Slobodian & Philip Mirowski (eds.), Nine Lives of Neoliberalism, 183
• Neoliberal economists were not united behind aggressive intellectual property rights #expands (0.80) — Dieter Plehwe, Quinn Slobodian & Philip Mirowski (eds.), Nine Lives of Neoliberalism, 165