In addition to the right to transfer, a second feature which commonly defines property rights is the power to sell. There are, to my knowledge, no recorded cases in which the actual sale of a mafia "firm" has taken place. There are reasons to assume that the process would be cumbersome, perhaps impossibly so. Suppose a prospective buyer informed the boss that he wanted to buy the firm, including customers, work force, networks, and all. Suppose, furthermore, that the boss consented· and they agreed on a price. This would be just the beginning. The whole network of clients and employees would have to be informed, and would have to agree, since they are bound specifically to the present owner. Lacking agreement, some might begin to pull out, initiating a chain reaction which would make credibility crumble until nothing was left to buy or sell.

Diego Gambetta, The Sicilian Mafia The Busi…, loc. 158