Abstract
The legitimacy of political institutions in liberal-democratic societies depends upon a clear split between the private and the public sphere. Political institutions protect public interests and private individuals/groups can freely pursue their private interests. In early-liberal political philosophy this was expressed by the concept of property: the state’s exercise of political power is legitimate to the extent that it protects private property, which is then left alone. However, three developments highlight that the contemporary economy diverges from this image of a clear private/public split: (i) the spill-overs of inequalities in private wealth to the political sphere, (ii) the political effects of the activities of corporations and (iii) the quasi-public functions fulfilled by common property initiatives. These interpenetrations of the private and public sphere risk hollowing out liberalism’s claim that political institutions are well equipped to protect public interests. This project investigates whether and how liberal political philosophy should be updated to take account of these developments, focusing on the need for a new conceptualization of property and its function in the legitimation of the exercise of political power. The development of such a conception would thus be an important innovation in liberal philosophy, which will help citizens and policy-makers to come to a better understanding of the role of private property in the current economic landscape. The project thereby shows whether liberal commitments to private freedom and public democracy can be sustained and points to new institutions of property and accountability for doing so.