
# 8: Fair Division


Many students believe that mathematics hasn’t changed in several hundred years. However, the field of fair division is relatively young. Some of the methods discussed in this chapter were developed after the 1940s. This is an open field of study in mathematics. The methods we will look at do not always give the best possible answer but they are the best methods we have at this point in time.

Fair division tries to divide something in an equitable way. It can be used to divide up an estate, a jewelry collection, or a piece of land among heirs. Fair division can also be used to split up the assets of a business when a partnership is being dissolved. It can even be used by roommates to divide up the cleaning chores when the cleaning deposit is on the line.

8: Fair Division is shared under a CC BY-SA 4.0 license and was authored, remixed, and/or curated by Maxie Inigo, Jennifer Jameson, Kathryn Kozak, Maya Lanzetta, & Kim Sonier via source content that was edited to conform to the style and standards of the LibreTexts platform; a detailed edit history is available upon request.