Institute for Law and Economics

The Institute for Law & Economics was established in 2006 as one of the several centers that specialize in interdisciplinary methods at the University of Minnesota. The Law & Economics Institute contributes to this mission of the University by promoting interdisciplinary research at the interface of economics and the law. Economics provides a tool for studying how legal rules affect human behavior, offering a unique methodology to understand and address contemporary legal and social problems. The Institute seeks to promote interdisciplinary collaborations within the University, as well as with other centers and scholars, nationally and internationally. The Institute for Law & Economics will conduct seminars, organize conferences, sponsor activities in conjunction with other interdisciplinary centers, and host distinguished visitors. Through these efforts the Institute hopes to offer a privileged opportunity for students and faculty alike to add an important dimension to traditional legal education.

The Institute for Law and Economics is also affiliated with the Institute for Law and Rationality.

The Great Recession that began in 2007 has rocked faith in US-style capitalism, both here and abroad. What indictments of the US system are fair, and what are myths? And what measures must policy makers take to assure sustained economic growth after the extraordinary fiscal and monetary stimulus measures taken in 2008 and 2009 wane or are withdrawn?

Dr. Robert Litan, Vice President of Research and Policy at the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation, and Senior Fellow, Economic Studies, Brookings Institution, will draw on his recent book, Good Capitalism, Bad Capitalism, co-authored with Will Baumol and Carl Schramm to discuss these questions, and to outline an agenda for strengthening the particular form of capitalism - entrepreneurial capitalism - for which the United States is best known.

He holds a J.D. from Yale Law School, an M.Phil. and a Ph.D. in economics from Yale University, and a B.S. in economics from the Wharton School of Finance, University of Pennsylvania.

Distinguished Visitor(s) to the Institute for 2009-10 academic year:
The Institute hosts several Distinguished Visitors each year. Distinguished Visitors are scholars from other institutions whose work falls within the ambit of the Institute. Visitors are in residence at the Law School for a short period of time, typically several days.

Spring 2010

TBA - Jonathan Katz was Secretary of the U. S. Securities and Exchange Commission for twenty years. His tenure as Secretary spanned seven SEC Chairmen and four Acting Chairmen.

Since his retirement in January 2006, Mr. Katz has served as a consultant on SEC regulatory requirements and worked with foreign governments and markets in Mexico, India, Thailand, Vietnam, Russia, Turkey, South Africa and the Phillipines.

Mr. Katz has also served as an advisor to international organizations and foreign governments on the development and regulation of capital markets in developing countries.

He has written several articles on capital market regulation, including the United States Chamber of Commerce published report in 2009, Examining the Efficiency and Effectiveness of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

TBA - Prof. Emanuela Carbonara, Assistant Professor at the Faculty of Economics, University of Bologna. Prof. Carbonara's main research interests are the law and economics of contracts and market regulation

TBA - Professor Giuseppe Dari-Mattiacci, Amsterdam Center for Law & Economics. Prof. Dari-Mattiacci specializes in the economic analysis of fundamental areas of the law, such as tort, contract, property and litigation. His research interests also cover welfare vs. fairness, public choice, evolution of law, ancient law, and slavery.