 Common law, by contrast, is a body of practice and tradition that sometimes needs to be supplemented by legislation. Crucially, however, by virtue of passing the test of time as a device for settling disputes, common law cannot be seen as mere prejudice or superstition. On the contrary, it will have a decided advantage over ongoing legislation, given that legislation is driven by untested ideas about how to respond to the crises of the day, needing to be passed without anyone knowing the larger and lasting consequences. Hayek never doubted the need for legislation but lamented our propensity to be oblivious to its inevitably unintended consequences and to radically discount its inevitably unseen cost (Hayek 1973, 86). 