 First, some background: an institution may be identified by a system of rules that define positions, moves, penalties, rewards, etc. In some cases the rules of an institution are carefully written down and perhaps made a matter of legislation. The system of taxation in some country might be a good example. In other cases the rules of an institution are not explicitly formalized. An example might be the system of etiquette governing the writing, sending, replying to, etc. of wedding invitations. It is not easy to say what makes an institution “exist” in a society. That is a puzzle best left to the sociologists. 