Author Archives: Harvard Law School Forum on Corporate Governance and Financial Regulation

Advisory Directors

In our paper, Advisory Directors, which was recently made publicly available on SSRN, we study the characteristics and effects of directors dedicated to providing strategic counsel to the chief executive officer (CEO). The question of how to structure corporate boards for effective oversight of top management has attracted significant academic and regulatory efforts in recent […]

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Posted in Academic Research, Boards of Directors, Empirical Research | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

The Dodd-Frank Act, One Year On

Editor’s Note: The following post on the Dodd-Frank Act, published on the one-year anniversary of its passage, comes to us from Michael S. Barr, Professor of Law at the University of Michigan Law School and former Assistant Secretary for Financial Institutions at the Department of the Treasury. This post is based on a speech delivered […]

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Posted in Financial Crisis, Legislative & Regulatory Developments, Speeches & Testimony | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

Richard Breeden and Larry Hamdan Join PCG’s Advisory Board

The Forum is pleased to announce that Richard Breeden and Larry Hamdan joined the Advisory Board of the Harvard Law School Program on Corporate Governance. They are joining the existing members of the Board: William Ackman, Peter Atkins, Joseph Bachelder, Richard Climan, Isaac Corré, John Finley, Byron S. Georgiou, Robert Mendelsohn, David Millstone, Theodore Mirvis, […]

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The Impact of Common Advisors on Mergers and Acquisitions

In our paper, The Impact of Common Advisors on Mergers and Acquisitions, which was recently made publicly available on SSRN, we examine the conflict of interest that an investment bank faces when advising both the target and acquirer in a merger or acquisition (M&A) by investigating how common advisors affect deal outcomes. When the New […]

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Bebchuk Becomes President-Elect of the Western Economic Association International

In its recent annual meeting held in San Diego, the Western Economic Association International (WEAI) elected Professor Lucian Bebchuk to be its President-Elect during 2011-2012. Bebchuk is scheduled to serve as President of the WEAI during 2012-2013. Founded in 1922, WEAI is a non-profit, educational organization of economists, with 1,800 members around the world, dedicated […]

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Derivatives and the Legal Origin of the 2008 Credit Crisis

In the paper Derivatives and the Legal Origin of the 2008 Credit Crisis (published in the inaugural issue of the Harvard Business Law Review), I argue that the credit crisis of 2008 can be traced first and foremost to a little-known statute Congress passed in 2000 called the Commodities Futures Modernization Act (CFMA). In particular, […]

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Posted in Academic Research, Financial Crisis, Securities Litigation & Enforcement, Securities Regulation | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment

Intellectual Capital, Corporate Governance, and Firm Value

Previous empirical studies on the benefits of “good” governance perform comprehensive and detailed analyses of corporate governance structures and regulations, but make no reference to the board’s intellectual capital, or knowledge, thereby substantially limiting the understanding of the role of corporate governance in organizational value creation. In the paper, Intellectual Capital, Corporate Governance, and Firm […]

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Posted in Academic Research, Boards of Directors, Empirical Research | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

An Introduction to the US Cleared Swap Infrastructure

Introduction In September 2009, the leaders of the G-20 stated that “All standardized OTC derivatives contracts should be traded on exchanges or electronic trading platforms, where appropriate, and cleared through central counterparties by end-2012 at the latest.” In the United States, legislation to give effect to this statement was a central pillar of the over-the-counter […]

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SEC Enforcement Actions Against Outside Directors Offer Reminder for Boards

In recent months, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has brought two enforcement actions against independent directors of two publicly traded companies. While the commission historically has not pursued public company directors, it does so when it deems the directors to have knowingly permitted or facilitated violations of the securities laws. This report discusses these […]

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Posted in Legislative & Regulatory Developments, Practitioner Publications, Securities Litigation & Enforcement | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment

The Volcker Rule and Evolving Financial Markets

In the paper, The Volcker Rule and Evolving Financial Markets, published in the inaugural issue of the Harvard Business Law Review, I question the effectiveness of the Volcker Rule in light of change in the financial markets over the last thirty years. The Volcker Rule largely prohibits proprietary trading by banking entities—in effect, reintroducing to […]

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Posted in Academic Research, Banking & Financial Institutions, Financial Crisis, Financial Regulation, Legislative & Regulatory Developments | Tagged , , , , , , | 2 Comments