X-Inefficiency Law and Legal Definition
X-Inefficiency is the cost that is higher than it needs to be because a firm is operating inefficiently. This is most often seen for firms that have a great deal of market control, especially monopoly. The lack of competition allows a business to pad it's expenses, hire unneeded employees (like relatives), goof off instead of working, and all sorts of other things that lessen production and increase cost. The business is not penalized for these actions, because market control allows the company to extract whatever price is needed to cover cost.