3. Ex ante efficiency
* Our previous analysis examined the effects of priority rules on incentives
to liquidate or continue an already failing firm. However, priority rules also
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affect the profitability of new investments by influencing the probability of
bankruptcy and the return that investors get if the project fails. These projects
might be undertaken by new firms, by existing firms, or by otherwise failing
firms, where the new investment project is part of the decision to continue the
firm. In this section we analyze the influence of priority rules on new investment
incentives, again taking a public policy viewpoint. We derive a social
efficiency condition and then consider the circumstances under which the APR
or the me-first rule gives private parties efficient investment incentives.