William W. Bratton

University of Pennsylvania Law School

Nicholas F. Gallicchio Professor of Law; Co-Director Institute for Law & Economics

3501 Sansom Street

Philadelphia, PA 19104

United States

European Corporate Governance Institute (ECGI)

Research Associate

c/o ECARES ULB CP 114

B-1050

Brussels

Belgium

http://www.ecgi.org

  • University of Pennsylvania Law School

  • European Corporate Governance Institute (ECGI)

SCHOLARLY PAPERS

42

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Scholarly Papers (42)

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1.

Enron and the Dark Side of Shareholder Value

Tulane Law Review, May 2002, Forthcoming
Number of pages: 79 Posted: 02 Mar 2002
William W. Bratton
University of Pennsylvania Law School
Downloads 10,700 (387)
Citation 26

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2.

Enron, Sarbanes-Oxley and Accounting: Rules Versus Principles Versus Rents

Villanova Law Review, Vol. 48, No. 4, p. 1023, 2003
Number of pages: 35 Posted: 26 Nov 2003
William W. Bratton
University of Pennsylvania Law School
Downloads 4,984 (1,505)
Citation 11

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Enron, Corporate Governance, Securities Law, Corporate Law, Sarbanes-Oxley

3.

A Transactional Genealogy of Scandal: From Michael Milken to Enron to Goldman Sachs

Southern California Law Review, Vol. 86, pp. 783-868 (2013), U of Penn, Inst for Law & Econ Research Paper No. 12-26, Georgetown Law and Economics Research Paper No. 12-034, Georgetown Public Law Research Paper No. 12-126
Number of pages: 86 Posted: 15 Aug 2012 Last Revised: 13 Dec 2014
William W. Bratton and Adam J. Levitin
University of Pennsylvania Law School and Georgetown University Law Center
Downloads 3,572 (2,686)
Citation 1

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securitization, derivatives, CDO, CBO, CDS, Milken, Enron, SIV, Abacus, First Executive, Imperial Corporation, structured finance, firm, fiduciary, scandal, swaps, SPE, SPV

4.

Comparative Corporate Governance and the Theory of the Firm: The Case Against Global Cross Reference

Columbia Journal of Transnational Law, Vol. 38, No. 2, 1999
Number of pages: 62 Posted: 26 Feb 2000
William W. Bratton and Joseph A. McCahery
University of Pennsylvania Law School and Tilburg University - School of Law; European Banking Center (EBC)
Downloads 3,544 (2,724)
Citation 19

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5.

Hedge Funds and Governance Targets

Georgetown Law Journal, Vol. 95, p. 1375, 2007, Georgetown Law and Economics Research Paper No. 928689, ECGI - Law Working Paper No. 80/2007
Number of pages: 59 Posted: 06 Sep 2006 Last Revised: 22 Jan 2019
William W. Bratton
University of Pennsylvania Law School
Downloads 2,942 (3,753)
Citation 34

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corporate governance, corporations, dividends, hedge funds, proxy voting, shareholder activism, securities regulation

6.

The New Dividend Puzzle

Georgetown Law Journal, Vol. 93, p. 845, 2005, Georgetown Law and Economics Research Paper No. 535462
Number of pages: 51 Posted: 28 Apr 2004 Last Revised: 14 Aug 2010
William W. Bratton
University of Pennsylvania Law School
Downloads 2,569 (4,712)

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7.

Berle and Means Reconsidered at the Century's Turn

Downloads 2,497 ( 4,974)
Citation 10

Berle and Means Reconsidered at the Century's Turn

Journal of Corporation Law, Vol. 26, No. 3, 2001
Number of pages: 40 Posted: 31 Jan 2001
William W. Bratton
University of Pennsylvania Law School
Downloads 1,430 (12,283)
Citation 8

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Berle and Means Reconsidered at the Century's Turn

Journal of Corporation Law, Vol. 26, No. 3, pp. 737-770, Spring 2001
Number of pages: 34 Posted: 16 Nov 2001
William W. Bratton
University of Pennsylvania Law School
Downloads 1,067 (19,293)
Citation 11

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8.

How Does Corporate Mobility Affect Lawmaking? A Comparative Analysis

ECGI - Law Working Paper No. 91/2008, Georgetown Law and Economics Research Paper No. 1086667, Amsterdam Center for Law & Economics Working Paper No. 2008-01
Number of pages: 44 Posted: 25 Jan 2008 Last Revised: 22 Jan 2019
William W. Bratton, Joseph A. McCahery and Erik P. M. Vermeulen
University of Pennsylvania Law School, Tilburg University - School of Law; European Banking Center (EBC) and Tilburg University - Department of Business Law
Downloads 2,446 (5,127)
Citation 1

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corporate mobility, costs of regulation, regulatory competition

9.

The Case Against Shareholder Empowerment

University of Pennsylvania Law Review, Vol. 158, p. 653, 2010, U of Penn, Inst for Law & Econ Research Paper No. 09-35, Georgetown Law and Economics Research Paper No. 1480290
Number of pages: 76 Posted: 01 Oct 2009 Last Revised: 04 Apr 2010
William W. Bratton and Michael L. Wachter
University of Pennsylvania Law School and University of Pennsylvania Law School - Institute for Law and Economics
Downloads 2,100 (6,634)
Citation 29

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Corporations, corporate governance, financial crisis, law reform, regulatory reform, shareholder wealth maximization, shareholder primacy, risk management, leverage, high risk strategies, balance of power between directors and shareholders, agency costs

10.

Shareholder Primacy's Corporatist Origins: Adolf Berle and 'The Modern Corporation'

Journal of Corporation Law, Vol. 34, Pg. 99, 2008, U of Penn, Inst for Law & Econ Research Paper No. 07-24, Georgetown Law and Economics Research Paper No. 1021273
Number of pages: 54 Posted: 16 Oct 2007 Last Revised: 13 May 2009
William W. Bratton and Michael L. Wachter
University of Pennsylvania Law School and University of Pennsylvania Law School - Institute for Law and Economics
Downloads 2,066 (6,823)
Citation 4

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Adolf Berle, E. Merrick Dodd, corporate social responsibility, CSR, shareholder primacy, social welfare

11.

Bond Covenants and Creditor Protection: Economics and Law, Theory and Practice, Substance and Process

European Business Organization Law Review (EBOR), Forthcoming, Georgetown Law and Economics Research Paper No. 902910
Number of pages: 37 Posted: 17 May 2006
William W. Bratton
University of Pennsylvania Law School
Downloads 1,385 (13,215)

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agency costs, bank loans, bonds and bondholders, bond covenants, creditors' rights, legal capital, private placements, trust indentures

12.

Fiscal Federalism, Jurisdictional Competition and Tax Coordination: Translating Theory to Policy in the European Union

George Washington University Law School, Public Law and Legal Theory Working Paper No. 006
Number of pages: 50 Posted: 23 Feb 2000
William W. Bratton and Joseph A. McCahery
University of Pennsylvania Law School and Tilburg University - School of Law; European Banking Center (EBC)
Downloads 1,330 (14,074)
Citation 9

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13.

Venture Capital on the Downside: Preferred Stock and Corporate Control

Michigan Law Review, Vol. 100, No. 5, March 2002, Forthcoming
Number of pages: 76 Posted: 22 Nov 2001
William W. Bratton
University of Pennsylvania Law School
Downloads 1,327 (14,117)
Citation 2

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14.

Sovereign Debt Restructuring and the Best Interest of Creditors

Vanderbilt Law Review, Vol. 57, Pg. 1, 2004, GWU Law School, Public Law Research Paper No. 59, Georgetown Law and Economics Research Paper No. 387880
Number of pages: 79 Posted: 14 Mar 2003 Last Revised: 25 Dec 2014
William W. Bratton and G. Mitu Gulati
University of Pennsylvania Law School and Duke University School of Law
Downloads 1,029 (20,719)
Citation 9

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15.

Rules, Principles, and the Accounting Crisis in the United States

Downloads 920 ( 24,450)
Citation 2

Rules, Principles, and the Accounting Crisis in the United States

European Business Organization Law Review, Vol. 5, No. 1, 2004
Number of pages: 32 Posted: 15 Nov 2004
William W. Bratton
University of Pennsylvania Law School
Downloads 920 (24,026)
Citation 2

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Corporation and securities law, illegal behaviour, enforcement of law, accounting, auditing

Rules, Principles, and the Accounting Crisis in the United States

European Business Organization Law Review (EBOR), Vol. 5, No. 1, 2004
Posted: 30 Sep 2004
William W. Bratton
University of Pennsylvania Law School

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Corporation and securities law, illegal behaviour, enforcement of law, accounting, auditing

16.

The New Bond Workouts

University of Pennsylvania Law Review, Vol. 166, No. 1597, 2018, U of Penn, Inst for Law & Econ Research Paper No. 17-9, European Corporate Governance Institute (ECGI) - Law Working Paper No. 356/2017
Number of pages: 78 Posted: 03 Mar 2017 Last Revised: 11 Dec 2018
William W. Bratton and Adam J. Levitin
University of Pennsylvania Law School and Georgetown University Law Center
Downloads 894 (25,562)
Citation 1

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Corporations, Bankruptcy, Corporate Finance, Securities, Bonds, Financial Distress, Reorganizations, Debt Restructuring, Trust Indenture Act, Collective Action Clauses, Unanimous Action Clause, Creditor Coercion, Exit Consents, Intercreditor Duty of Good Faith

17.

Shareholder Value, Financial Conservatism, and Auditor Independence

Duke Law Journal, Vol. 53, No. 2
Number of pages: 38 Posted: 10 Oct 2003
William W. Bratton
University of Pennsylvania Law School
Downloads 834 (28,115)

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18.

Treatment Differences and Political Realities in the GAAP-IFRS Debate

Virginia Law Review, Vol. 95, p. 989, 2009, GWU Legal Studies Research Paper No. 461, GWU Law School Public Law Research Paper No. 461, Georgetown Law and Economics Research Paper No. 1375617
Number of pages: 35 Posted: 10 Apr 2009 Last Revised: 13 Aug 2010
William W. Bratton and Lawrence A. Cunningham
University of Pennsylvania Law School and George Washington University
Downloads 743 (32,934)

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GAAP, IFRS, FASB, Securities Exchange Commission

19.

A Theory of Preferred Stock

University of Pennsylvania Law Review, Vol. 161, P. 1815, 2013, ECGI - Law Working Paper No. 201, U of Penn, Inst for Law & Econ Research Paper No. 13-3
Number of pages: 92 Posted: 10 Feb 2013 Last Revised: 22 Jan 2019
William W. Bratton and Michael L. Wachter
University of Pennsylvania Law School and University of Pennsylvania Law School - Institute for Law and Economics
Downloads 735 (33,447)
Citation 3

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Preferred shares, corporate equity, contractual debt, corporate finance, corporation law, securities law

20.

The Equilibrium Content of Corporate Federalism

Wake Forest Law Review, Vol. 41, No. 3, p. 619, 2006, ECGI - Law Working Paper No. 23/2004; Georgetown Law and Econ. Research Paper No. 606481
Number of pages: 78 Posted: 10 Dec 2004 Last Revised: 22 Jan 2019
William W. Bratton and Joseph A. McCahery
University of Pennsylvania Law School and Tilburg University - School of Law; European Banking Center (EBC)
Downloads 734 (33,510)
Citation 6

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corporate law, corporate federalism, Delaware, shareholder value, fiduciary law

21.

The Political Economy of Fraud on the Market

University of Pennsylvania Law Review, Vol. 160, p. 69, 2011, U of Penn, Inst for Law & Econ Research Paper No. 11-17
Number of pages: 101 Posted: 28 Apr 2011 Last Revised: 20 Dec 2011
William W. Bratton and Michael L. Wachter
University of Pennsylvania Law School and University of Pennsylvania Law School - Institute for Law and Economics
Downloads 724 (34,161)

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Antifraud, class actions, corporate governance, law reform, Securities and Exchange Commission, securities regulation, shareholder rights

22.

Private Standards, Public Governance: A New Look at the Financial Accounting Standards Board

Boston College Law Review, Vol 48, Pg. 5, 2007, Georgetown Law and Economics Research Paper No. 902905
Number of pages: 50 Posted: 17 May 2006 Last Revised: 13 May 2011
William W. Bratton
University of Pennsylvania Law School
Downloads 724 (34,161)

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Accounting, Securities Regulation, Administrative Law

23.

Pari Passu and a Distressed Sovereign's Rational Choices

Emory Law Journal, Vol. 53, p. 823, 2004, Georgetown Law and Economics Research Paper No. 505942
Number of pages: 45 Posted: 20 Feb 2004 Last Revised: 14 Aug 2010
William W. Bratton
University of Pennsylvania Law School
Downloads 549 (49,256)
Citation 5

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24.

The Academic Tournament Over Executive Compensation

California Law Review, Vol. 93, No. 5, 2005
Number of pages: 26 Posted: 08 Mar 2005
William W. Bratton
University of Pennsylvania Law School
Downloads 460 (61,558)

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25.

Hedge Funds and Governance Targets: Long-Term Results

University of Pennsylvania Institute for Law & Economics Research Paper No. 10-17
Number of pages: 32 Posted: 15 Sep 2010
William W. Bratton
University of Pennsylvania Law School
Downloads 443 (64,405)
Citation 2

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Corporate Finance, Hedge Funds, Empirical Research, Financial Performance, Changes External to the Investment Target, Value Creation

26.

The Separation of Corporate Law and Social Welfare

Washington and Lee Law Review, Vol. 74, p. 767, 2017, U of Penn, Inst for Law & Econ Research Paper No. 17-10, European Corporate Governance Institute (ECGI) - Law Working Paper No. 357/2017
Number of pages: 24 Posted: 04 Mar 2017 Last Revised: 01 Mar 2019
William W. Bratton
University of Pennsylvania Law School
Downloads 395 (73,907)

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Corporate governance, corporation law, corporate legal theory, shareholder value, agency costs, shareholder empowerment, wealth maximization, law and economics, social responsibility, legal history, welfare economics

27.

Hedge Fund Activism, Poison Pills, and the Jurisprudence of Threat

in The Corporate Contract In Changing Times: Is the Law Keeping Up? (William Savitt, Steven Davidoff Solomon, Randall Thomas eds.), Forthcoming, U of Penn, Inst for Law & Econ Research Paper No. 16-20, European Corporate Governance Institute (ECGI) - Law Research Paper No. 330/2016
Number of pages: 34 Posted: 08 Sep 2016 Last Revised: 24 Sep 2016
William W. Bratton
University of Pennsylvania Law School
Downloads 393 (74,345)

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Business Organizations, Corporations, Corporate Control, Corporate Governance, Corporate Voting, Merger, Mergers and Acquisitions Litigation, Proxy Contests, Restructuring, Shareholding, Takeover, Takeovers

28.

Welfare, Dialectic, and Mediation in Corporate Law

Berkeley Business Law Journal, Vol. 2
Number of pages: 16 Posted: 08 Mar 2005
William W. Bratton
University of Pennsylvania Law School
Downloads 383 (76,561)

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29.

Bankers and Chancellors

Texas Law Review, Vol. 93, P. 1, 2014, U of Penn, Inst for Law & Econ Research Paper No. 14-23
Number of pages: 84 Posted: 07 Jun 2014 Last Revised: 13 Dec 2014
William W. Bratton and Michael L. Wachter
University of Pennsylvania Law School and University of Pennsylvania Law School - Institute for Law and Economics
Downloads 380 (77,235)

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Corporation law, mergers and acquisitions, M & A, M&A, takeovers, corporate finance, investment banking, conflicts of interest, fiduciary v. contractual relationships, conflict management, reputational marketplace

30.

Restoring Trust in America's Business Institutions

Georgetown Law and Economics Research Paper No. 784526, Vanderbilt Law and Economics Research Paper No. 05-25
Number of pages: 143 Posted: 24 Aug 2005
William W. Bratton and Margaret M. Blair
University of Pennsylvania Law School and Vanderbilt University - Law School
Downloads 337 (88,777)

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31.

Introduction to Institutional Investor Activism: Hedge Funds and Private Equity, Economics and Regulation

Institutional Investor Activism: Hedge Funds and Private Equity, Economics and Regulation (William W. Bratton and Joseph A. McCahery eds., Oxford University Press, 2015), U of Penn, Inst for Law & Econ Research Paper No. 16-12
Number of pages: 49 Posted: 28 May 2016
William W. Bratton and Joseph A. McCahery
University of Pennsylvania Law School and Tilburg University - School of Law; European Banking Center (EBC)
Downloads 333 (89,981)
Citation 1

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Law and economics, corporate governance and control, securities law and regulation, institutional investors, shareholder activism, European Union, firm financial performance, mergers and acquisitions, M&A, bankruptcy, takeovers

32.

Tracking Berle’s Footsteps: The Trail of The Modern Corporation’s Last Chapter

Seattle University Law Review, Vol. 33, p. 849, 2010, U of Penn, Inst for Law & Econ Research Paper No. 10-16
Number of pages: 28 Posted: 12 Sep 2010
William W. Bratton and Michael L. Wachter
University of Pennsylvania Law School and University of Pennsylvania Law School - Institute for Law and Economics
Downloads 288 (105,483)

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Corporations, Adolf Berle, corporatism, corporate social responsibility, social welfare, public interest, deregulation, regulatory state, corporate compliance, separation of ownership and control

33.

Lyondell: A Note of Approbation

New York Law School Law Review, Vol. 55, Pg. 561, 2010/11, U of Penn, Inst for Law & Econ Research Paper No. 10-22
Number of pages: 19 Posted: 16 Oct 2010 Last Revised: 02 Apr 2011
William W. Bratton
University of Pennsylvania Law School
Downloads 261 (116,978)

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corporate law, fiduciary duty, Delaware courts, good faith, Revlon scrutiny, mergers

34.

Supersize Pay, Incentive Compatibility, and the Volatile Model of the Shareholder

Georgetown Law and Economics Research Paper No. 808027, Virginia Law & Business Review, Vol. 1, p. 55, 2006
Number of pages: 46 Posted: 29 Sep 2005 Last Revised: 12 Aug 2010
William W. Bratton
University of Pennsylvania Law School
Downloads 233 (131,291)

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35.

Shareholders and Social Welfare

Seattle University Law Review, Vol. 36, p. 489, 2013, U of Penn, Inst for Law & Econ Research Paper No. 13-21
Number of pages: 40 Posted: 26 Jun 2013
William W. Bratton and Michael L. Wachter
University of Pennsylvania Law School and University of Pennsylvania Law School - Institute for Law and Economics
Downloads 232 (131,840)

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Corporate governance, securities, management, shareholder value, shareholder empowerment, agency cost, wealth distribution, financial markets, law and economics

36.

Corporate Law and the Myth of Efficient Market Control

Cornell Law Review, Forthcoming, U of Penn, Inst for Law & Econ Research Paper No. 19-21
Number of pages: 49 Posted: 10 May 2019
William W. Bratton and Simone M. Sepe
University of Pennsylvania Law School and University of Arizona - James E. Rogers College of Law
Downloads 204 (149,082)

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corporate governance, theory of the firm, management agency costs

37.

The Modern Corporation and Private Property Revisited: Gardiner Means and the Administered Price

U of Penn, Inst for Law & Econ Research Paper No. 18-29, European Corporate Governance Institute (ECGI) - Law Working Paper No. 443/2019
Number of pages: 41 Posted: 12 Sep 2018 Last Revised: 19 Mar 2019
William W. Bratton
University of Pennsylvania Law School
Downloads 183 (164,822)

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Berle & Means, separation of ownership & control, corporate governance, corporate legal history, corporatism, theory of administered prices, corporate concentration, inflexible prices

38.

Framing a Purpose for Corporate Law

Journal of Corporation Law, Vol. 39, P. 713, 2014, U of Penn, Inst for Law & Econ Research Paper No. 16-19
Number of pages: 13 Posted: 08 Sep 2016
William W. Bratton
University of Pennsylvania Law School
Downloads 183 (164,822)

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Corporate Governance, Corporation Law, Corporate Legal Theory, Utility Maximization, Shareholder Value, Welfare Consequentialism, Efficiency, Competition

39.

A Tale of Two Markets: Regulation and Innovation in Post-Crisis Mortgage and Structured Finance Markets

U of Penn, Inst for Law & Econ Research Paper No. 19-33 (2019)
Number of pages: 90 Posted: 23 Aug 2019
William W. Bratton and Adam J. Levitin
University of Pennsylvania Law School and Georgetown University Law Center
Downloads 71 (327,008)

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structured products, financial crisis, securitization, financial regulation, home mortgages

40.

Foreword: Bankruptcy’s New and Old Frontiers

University of Pennsylvania Law Review, Vol. 166, Pg. 1571, 2018, U of Penn, Inst for Law & Econ Research Paper No. 18-36
Number of pages: 27 Posted: 11 Dec 2018
William W. Bratton and David A. Skeel
University of Pennsylvania Law School and University of Pennsylvania Law School
Downloads 70 (329,617)

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Bankruptcy law, legal history, corporate reorganization, financial distress, 1978 Bankruptcy Code, Trust Indenture Act, Chapter 11, receivership, debtor in possession, securities, judges, judicial oversight, consensual agreements

41.

Deadweight Costs and Intrinsic Wrongs of Nativism: Economics, Freedom, and Legal Suppression of Spanish

Cornell Law Review, Vol. 84, P. 595, 1999
Posted: 23 Jun 1999
Drucilla Cornell and William W. Bratton
Rutgers University School of Law and University of Pennsylvania Law School

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42.

Dividends, Noncontractibility and Corporate Law

Cardozo Law Review, Vol. 19, No. 2 (1997) (Symposium on the Essays of Warren Buffett)
Posted: 09 Apr 1997
William W. Bratton
University of Pennsylvania Law School

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