Equality of Resources Theory

Dworkin's theory of distributive justice — holding that justice requires equality of resources (not welfare), using a hypothetical auction and insurance market to specify what equality demands.

Equality of resources: justice requires that people start with equal shares of social resources — not equal welfare or utility. The hypothetical auction: resources are distributed by an initial auction where each person has equal purchasing power — no one envies anyone else's bundle (envy-free criterion). The insurance market: natural talents and handicaps cannot be equalized directly, but people would have insured against them from behind a veil of ignorance — hypothetical insurance payouts compensate for bad brute luck. The luck-choice distinction: equal resources, then personal responsibility for choices.