This paper provides a critical reconstruction of Sugden's intellectual itinerary with respect to his theory of team reasoning, starting from the beginning of his reflection in the early 1980s to his latest contributions in 2015. My reconstruction follows both a historical and an interpretative approach to show the continuity of different lines of thought, developed in different moments, notwithstanding the changes in the aims and scope of the theory from one period to another. I divide the evolution of Sugden's team reasoning into four main stages. The first includes some works prior

In his 2018 book, The Community of Advantage, economist Robert Sugden sets out his Principle of Mutual Benefit. This paper investigates the role that Sugden's principle occupies in Rawls' Political Liberalism. Would it be chosen by contracting parties in the Original Position and with what implications? We firstly show the potential complementarities of Rawls' and Sugden's approaches, integrating them in a broad philosophical framework. Second, we describe three scenarios in which Sugden's principle could be integrated into Rawls's system-(1) as a second order principle of the Difference Principle, (2) as a replacement of the whole Second Principle, or ( 3) as a substitute for the Difference Principle. We test each hypothesis through Rawls's artificial device of the Original Position. We suggest that the Principle of Mutual Benefit can be understood as a substitute for the Difference Principle, reaffirming the importance of social justice in guaranteeing the stability of a market society.

This paper explores the implications of a Civil Economy approach to consumer ethics, by addressing the idea that Antonio Genovesi’s (1713–1769) notion of mutual assistance can be understood in terms of collective intentionality or team reasoning . I try to give reasons for this idea by a careful examination of Genovesi’s conception of social life and human agency and by reading it through the lens of team reasoning. I argue that this understanding of mutual assistance may imply broad constraints over agents’ choices whenever they conflict with the good of society. Then I explore the implications of a mutual assistance approach to market ethics in a global society, where conflicting views of good and different group affiliations are possible.