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

Delaware Court of Chancery Holds Statute of Frauds Applies to LLC Agreements

On October 22, 2008, Vice Chancellor Lamb of the Delaware Court of Chancery issued an opinion in Olson v. Halvorsen with important implications for parties contemplating the formation of a Delaware limited liability company. Ruling on a question of first impression, the court held that the Delaware statute of frauds applies to limited liability company […]

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Executive Compensation Rules Under the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008

My colleagues in the Employment Practice Group at Davis Polk & Wardwell have prepared a memorandum discussing the executive compensation requirements applicable under each of the Capital Purchase Program, Troubled Asset Auction Program and Program for Systemically Significant Failing Institutions implemented under Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008 (“EESA”). The memo also briefly summarizes the […]

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The Oracle Acquisition of PeopleSoft

Recently, in the Mergers, Acquisitions, and Split-Ups course here at Harvard Law School, which is co-taught by Vice Chancellor Leo Strine, Jr. and Professor Robert C. Clark, there was a panel discussion which focused on Oracle’s acquisition of PeopleSoft. The panel consisted of A. George “Skip” Battle, chairman of the PeopleSoft board’s Transaction Committee, Victor […]

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Reconsidering “Say on Pay” Proposals

Daniel Summerfield and I recently presented a paper to the Shareholder Forum Program on Reconsidering “Say on Pay” Proposals, held recently at the Columbia School of Journalism. We address arguments put forth by opponents of shareholder “Say on Pay”. The paper cites benefits produced by Say on Pay in Britain and analyzes points where debate […]

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SEC Adopts Enforcement Manual

This post has been prepared by my partner John H. Sturc. The SEC’s Division of Enforcement recently issued its first-ever manual. Intended as a reference for Enforcement Division staff, the Manual provides important insight into SEC decision-making and processes on such key matters as evaluating possible investigations, opening and closing matters, issuing Wells letters, communicating […]

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Key Principles for Strengthening Corporate Governance

Editor’s Note: The NACD, in its report, acknowledges the extraordinary and pro bono efforts of Ira Millstein and Holly Gregory and their colleagues at Weil, Gotshal & Manges LLP for their assistance with preparation of the principles. The National Association of Corporate Directors, with the support of the Business Roundtable, recently released Key Agreed Principles […]

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Posted in Boards of Directors, Corporate Elections & Voting, Executive Compensation, International Corporate Governance & Regulation | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

Do Politically Connected Boards Affect Firm Value?

In our paper “Do Politically Connected Boards Affect Firm Value?” which is forthcoming in the Review of Financial Studies, we explore how pervasive is the impact of political connections on the value of publicly traded U.S. companies. To address this question, the paper focuses on analyzing the value impact of political connections of major U.S. […]

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A Personal FAQ on the Financial Crisis of 2008

Editor’s Note: This post is by Ivo Welch of Brown University. In “A Personal FAQ on the Financial Crisis of 2008“, I muse about the magnitude of the mortgage losses, some of the problems that caused the current financial mess, and some potential remedies. First, the financial crisis is not caused just by bad mortgages, […]

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Posted in Financial Crisis, Legislative & Regulatory Developments, Op-Eds & Opinions | Tagged , , , | 2 Comments

Sovereign Wealth Funds Adopt Voluntary Best Practices

With the explosion in natural resource prices and trade surpluses, the corresponding increase in the size and investing profile of sovereign wealth funds (SWFs), and the unprecedented stress on the global financial system, SWFs have faced substantial and increasing political and popular suspicion and pressure from the international community to address concerns that their investment […]

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Consumer Biases and Firm Ownership

This week in the Law, Economics, and Organization Seminar at Harvard Law School I presented my paper Consumer Biases and Firm Ownership (joint with Alex Kaufman). In the paper we examine the role of firm ownership in mitigating incentives of firms to exploit consumer biases. Recent work has explored the implications of behavioral biases among […]

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