Corporate, Business and Commercial Law

Washington University School of Law's faculty has exceptional expertise in corporate, commercial, and business law. Faculty research and writing focuses on a wide range of topics including, but not limited to, securities law, consumer transactions, tax law, corporate and white collar crime, intellectual property, bankruptcy and antitrust.

Faculty Experts:

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Charles Burson Visiting Professor of Law Burson Charles Burson has an extensive professional career including Executive Vice President, General Counsel & Secretary at Monsanto Company from 2001-2006; Counsel to the Vice President, Assistant to the President and Chief of Staff at The White House, Office of the Vice President from 1997-2001; Attorney ... Expertise: Bush v. Gore, Supreme Court and presidential elections, lawyer's role in corporate crisis management Direct contact: (314) 935-8166 / cwburson@wulaw.wustl.edu

Adam Rosenzweig Associate Professor of Law Adam Rosenzweig has done extensive work in the area of tax law and policy. He previously worked as a visiting assistant professor at Northwestern University School of Law and clerked for Judge James L. Dennis, United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit. While working in New York, Rosenzweig ... Direct contact: (314) 935-4419 / arosenzweig@wulaw.wustl.edu

Gerrit De Geest Professor of Law De Geest specializes in comparative law and in law and economics. As a member of the European Group on an Integrated Contract Law and of the Economic Impact Group of the Common Principles of European Contract Law, De Geest has delved extensively into these issues and has served as the president of ... Direct contact: (314) 935-7839 / degeest@wulaw.wustl.edu

Cheryl Block Professor of Law Cheryl Block Cheryl Block is an expert in tax law and policy. Author of a leading book on corporate taxation, she has also written numerous articles on taxation, public policy relating to federal bailouts, legislative voting rules, social choice theory, federal budget process, and the interplay between tax and ... Expertise: federal budget, tax law and policy, corporate taxation, federal bailouts Direct contact: (314) 935-6444 / cblock@wulaw.wustl.edu

Samuel Buell Associate Professor of Law Samuel Buell Samuel Buell writes and teaches in the area of regulation of behavior in corporations and financial markets. His courses include Criminal Law and Securities Regulation. Buell frequently comments on white collar crime and federal criminal law for the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, the Washington ... Expertise: securities regulation, criminal law, white collar crime, corporations, federal criminal law Direct contact: (314) 935-6406 / swbuell@wulaw.wustl.edu

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News Stories & Tip Sheets:

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Federal Budget and Tax Policy for a Sound Fiscal Future Leading scholars and U.S. policymakers to debate federal budget challenges March 20-21 at WUSTL March 2, 2009 -- Washington University School of Law and the Center for Interdisciplinary Studies will bring together leading experts for "Federal Budget and Tax Policy for a Sound Fiscal Future," March 20-21. Conference discussion panels will focus on budget process rules, budget process reform, entitlements, tax expenditures, and budget accounting. The conference is free and open to the public; registration however, is required.

Extraordinary federal bailouts Better regulatory infrastructure and clear federal budgeting rules are necessary, says federal budget and tax law expert Sept. 24, 2008 -- Block "Emergency government bailouts of private industry are nothing new, but what makes the recent spate of so-called bailouts so extraordinary is simply the numbers involved and the extent of government involvement in ownership and management," says Cheryl Block, leading federal budget expert and professor of law at Washington University in St. Louis. "We absolutely need a better regulatory infrastructure to monitor and provide better early-warning signals, and to provide procedural mechanisms for responding to emergencies. It is troubling that weighty decisions are being made on an ad hoc basis behind closed doors. These decisions potentially involve not only substantial amounts of taxpayer money, but they also involve employment decisions regarding management of major business enterprises."

Supreme Court to rule on patent law -- Quanta v. LG "Patent holder had a right to sue a downstream purchaser," says patent law expert Jan. 22, 2008 -- Reversing the longstanding case law would give undue windfall to opportunistic third parties, says Kieff. The U.S. Supreme Court is reviewing Quanta v. LG, a case that could determine the future direction of patent law. "This case is key to ensuring that patent law develops in a way that best promotes innovation and competition," says F. Scott Kieff, J.D., professor of law at Washington University in St. Louis. Kieff and colleagues have filed an amicus brief in the Supreme Court in support of LG, arguing that under contract law the patent holder had a right to sue a downstream purchaser. Kieff will be closely following this case and is available for comment.

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Related News Clips:

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Show More Corporate, Business and Commercial Law Clips

Get ready for a wave of bank failures CNNMoney.com Feb. 23, 2009 -- In less than two months, regulators have seized 14 banks. Experts think many more banks will collapse before the financial crisis is over. "We'll have a banner year [of failures] this year," said Stuart Greenbaum, retired dean and professor emeritus at the WUSTL's Olin Business School.

Parties to meet over Chicago factory sit-in USA Today and 1 others Dec. 8, 2008 -- Workers of the Republic Windows & Doors factory began a sit-in protest after the plant closed leaving hundreds without jobs, severance pay or health insurance. Includes comments by labor law expert and WUSTL law professor emeritus Neil Bernstein.

Getting Rid Of Mercury Chemical & Engineering News Nov. 24, 2008 -- Anticipating a national rule on mercury removal from coal flue gas, technology providers jockey for position in this new market. Pratim Biswas, who chairs the department of energy, environmental, and chemical engineering at WUSTL, says titanium dioxide shows promise as an efficient mercury-removal mechanism.

Commentary: Jailing Executives Is One Thing Bush Did Right Bloomberg.com Oct. 31, 2008 -- WUSTL law professor Samuel Buell comments on prosecuting white-collar crimes.

For real recovery, credit's just a start NPR Marketplace Oct. 15, 2008 -- With markets doing, well, better, what's going on with the rest of the economy? Another way of asking that question: Are we in a recession? Kai Rysdall brings up the dreaded "R" word with WUSTL economist Steve Fazzari.

The new bailout pitch: It's NOT a bailout Associated Press and 19 others Oct. 1, 2008 -- Wayne Fields, WUSTL political rhetoric expert, comments on the federal government's financial rescue plan and the pitfalls of calling it a bailout.

How will the plan work? Chicago Tribune and 2 others Sept. 22, 2008 -- The Bush administration is expected to seek sweeping new powers from Congress next week to pull off its still-sketchy rescue plan. The bailout could operate through a newly formed federal agency, in the same vein as the Resolution Trust Corp., which was established two decades ago to unwind failed thrifts. WUSTL banking professor Stuart Greenbaum comments.

Would a Resolution Trust Corp.-type solution work? Los Angeles Times and 3 others Sept. 19, 2008 -- P rofessor Stuart Greenbaum comments on the ways that bankers, politicians and economists are grasping for ways to address the financial crisis.

Recent Rulings Bolster the Case for Class Actions The Wall Street Journal July 3, 2008 -- Widespread efforts by companies to prevent consumers from pursuing class-action suits against them are increasingly getting quashed by state courts. "There is an increasing sense on the part of courts that [corporate] accountability in the marketplace is being eliminated" by class-action prohibitions, says WUSTL law professor and consumer law specialist Michael Greenfield.

Senate Approves Nominees to SEC, Federal Reserve The Wall Street Journal and 3 others June 30, 2008 -- The Senate cleared three nominees to the Securities and Exchange Commission, agreeing by unanimous consent to confirm Luis Aguilar, Elisse Walter and Troy Paredes. WUSTL law professor Troy Paredes will serve a full five-year term ending in June 2013 and will succeed Paul Atkins, a Republican commissioner.

Bush to Nominate Paredes to SEC The Wall Street Journal and 2 others May 8, 2008 -- The Bush administration nominated WUSTL law professor Troy Paredes to fill a Republican commissioner slot at the Securities and Exchange Commission.

President Bush to nominate Paredes for SEC commissioner post Associated Press and 20 others May 7, 2008 -- President Bush intends to nominate WUSTL law school professor Troy Paredes to fill a Republican member vacancy of the Securities and Exchange Commission. Paredes has taught securities regulation, corporate governance and other subjects at WUSTL since 2001.

Commentary: Let The Markets Regulate Microsoft Forbes.com March 12, 2008 -- WUSTL law professor Scott Kieff writes a commentary about regulating Microsoft. He is also a research fellow at Stanford University' s Hoover Institution, where he runs the Hoover Project on Commercializing Innovation, which studies the law, economics and politics of innovation.

What Will Senate Hearings Mean for Gonzales? NPR - Talk Of The Nation April 24, 2007 -- Attorney General Alberto Gonzales faced tough questions during the Senate Judiciary Committee over his role in the firing of eight federal prosecutors. WUSTL law professor Samuel Buell, who is a former Enron prosecutor, was one of the experts speaking in this broadcast.

U.S. Inquiry on Bonds at Big Bank The New York Times and 1 others Feb. 12, 2007 -- Bank of America said that it was cooperating with a Justice Department investigation into bidding practices in the municipal bond business in exchange for leniency. Investigators are examining whether there was collusion among some financial institutions in bidding to handle the bond revenue during those interim periods. WUSTL law professor Kathleen Brickey, who specializes in white-collar crime, comments.

Judge again blocks flight attendants from striking against Northwest Airlines Associated Press, Chicago Tribune and 5 others Sept. 22, 2006 -- Northwest Airlines Corp. flight attendants on Thursday asked to be released from federal mediation so they can strike the carrier after a federal judge ruled they couldn't walk off the job. WUSTL law professor and labor relations expert Neil Bernstein comments.

Tightening noose Forbes June 19, 2006 -- Last year 2.4% of U.S. public companies were hit with securities class actions. Virtually all of those cases will be settled for pennies on the dollar--1.2% of maximum estimated losses in 2005, according to economic consultant Cornerstone Research. But loss as typically defined in securities suits has no connection to the economic reality of stock investing. A "fraud" that inflates a share price helps the investor who sells as much as it hurts the one who buys. Washington University researcher Anjan Thakor found that 31% of institutional investors showed a profit trading stocks of 480 companies that were later sued for fraud.

Debate over Fannie, Freddie takes place in the extremes Wall Street Journal March 3, 2006 -- Supporters of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac say that cutting their massive mortgage portfolios would doom the housing market. Critics say those same portfolios create the risk of an LTCM-style meltdown that would doom financial markets. They could both be wrong. One of the studies mentioned was a 2004 paper co-authored by WUSTL's real estate and finance professor Michael LaCour-Little, which found that the U.S. government-sponsored entities (GSEs) that buy and hold mortgages in an effort to keep borrowing costs low and make home-buying more affordable, gave homeowners just a 0.24-percentage-point advantage on their mortgage rates.

Commentary: Private insecurities Wall Street Journal Feb. 20, 2006 -- U. Pittsburgh professor Ken Lehn looks at the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act on its 10th anniversary. He mentions a recent study co-authored by WUSTL business professor Anjan Thakor which reveals a fundamental problem: The compensation investors receive in settlements of federal securities class-actions does not correspond to the harm investors incur from alleged securities fraud.

Northwest fate may hang on judge's decision USA Today and 32 others Feb. 16, 2006 -- WUSTL law professor and labor relations expert Neil Bernstein comments on union negotiations with Northwest Airlines over whether the company could throw out contracts with pilots and flight attendants.Bernstein said the judge's main concern was helping the airline sort out its financial problems and survive — not how much the workers get paid.

More News:

Record profile: Dean Joel Seligman, J.D., has towering reputation in Wall Street legal circles
May, 2000 - Securities and Exchange Commission Chairman Arthur Levitt joked at a recent law school conference that if the Library of Congress' wing of historical documents on the nation's markets were to burn down, the government simply could call Joel Seligman, J.D., with the request: "Could you just start from the beginning?" Full Story

Record profile: Drobak helps new Czech economy emerge
Feb., 1998 - Having walked along the line where the Iron Curtain used to separate Czechoslovakia and West Germany, Law Professor John Drobak, J.D., marvels over the remaining pieces of destroyed fence and the tremendous political upheaval they represent. But nearly as dramatic for Drobak, an expert in economic regulation, has been the opportunity to observe personally the rapid economic transformation of the Czech Republic following the collapse of communism. Full Story

Legal scholar says Sarbanes-Oxley Act makes a significant contribution to federal criminal law
March, 2003 -The U.S. government quickly responded to the public outrage over the numerous corporate scandals of 2001 and beyond by enacting the Sarbanes-Oxley Act. While critics complain that the law's criminal provisions are ineffective, Kathleen F. Brickey, the James Carr Professor of Criminal Jurisprudence at the Washington University School of Law, finds that Sarbanes-Oxley "addresses weaknesses in federal criminal law that became all too apparent in the aftermath of the Enron-Andersen debacle." Full Story

Don't overcharge and watch your receipts, consumer law expert advises
Dec., 2002 - Consumers in a gift-buying frenzy are at greater risk of fraud, says Michael M. Greenfield, J.D., Walter D. Coles Professor of Law at Washington University in St. Louis and author of a treatise titled Consumer Law, as well as a casebook, Consumer Transactions. Full Story

SEC disclosure regulations may be overwhelming investors with too much information
March 2003 - Investors and legislators alike continue to be concerned about the true state of companies. Since the corporate accounting scandals of Enron, Tyco, WorldCom and others, there has been a legislative push for full disclosure from companies. Full Story

Koreans visit WU to learn about U.S. intellectual property law
Dec., 1996 - Representatives from Yonsei University in Seoul, Korea, said their recent visit to the Washington University School of Law provided invaluable insights into the nuances of U.S. intellectual property law.

"We are the first graduate program in intellectual property and law in Korea but don't yet have the professional manpower quantitatively and qualitatively," said Jung-Gun Kim, dean of Yonsei's Graduate School of Intellectual Property and Law. "I wanted the students to meet and be exposed to some of the renowned experts in the world in this field." Full Story