Academic & Scholarly News

Are Consumer Protection Regulations Harming the Middle Class?

09/27/16

A new paper by Franceso D'Acunto and Albert Rossi, both at the University of Maryland's Department of Finance, contends that the Dodd-Frank Act resulted in "a substantial redistribution of credit from middle-class households to wealt

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Conference and Call for Papers: Consumer Protection and Economic Development, 25 Years of the International Association of Consumer Law

08/11/16

A Conference celebrating the 25th year of International Association FO Consumer law will be held July 16 to 19, in Porto Alegre (UFRGS), Brazil. The The purpose of the Conference is to provide a forum where leading international scholars, practitioners, representatives of the consumer organization, public authorities and business representatives can join to present and discuss together the fundaments, the challenges and the future of consumer protection worldwide.

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Remembering Alan Resnick

07/29/16

One of the hardest things about teaching, whether in an informal setting or in a classroom, is telling someone that they are . . . ahem, WRONG. Or at least not right. Or could use improvement. Or there is an opportunity to improve. Something like that. . . . Professor Alan Resnick, a beloved bankruptcy scholar and practitioner, had a gift of helping others improve their work.

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The Bad CHOICE Act

07/11/16

I'm testifying before House Financial Services tomorrow regarding the "CHOICE Act," the Republican Dodd-Frank alternative.  My testimony is here.

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Law & Society, 2016 Panels on Household Finance

06/02/16

If you happen to be at the 2016 Law & Society Association meetings in New Orleans, stop by the panels from the Collaborative Research Network (CRN) on Household Finance. This group got its start as an international collaborative studying overindebtedness thanks for the leadership of people like the late Jean Braucher, Johanna Niemi, Iain Ramsay, and Bill Whitford. We have scholars from all over the world and from diverse disciplines thinking about how law on the ground affects household financial outcomes.

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Digital Wallets: The Honor All Devices Rule

06/02/16

Every wondered how ApplePay works?  What the whole deal with Chip cards is?  Those contactless readers at stores?  If you're looking to nerd out on 21st century payment technology...and its legal and business implications, look no further.  I have a new paper out entitled Pandora’s Digital Box:  Digital Wallets and the Honor All Devices Rules.

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Truthiness, Or the Shenanigans of Executoriness

02/29/16

For the first time in nearly two decades of wrestling with section 365 of the Bankruptcy Code, I feel like I really understand the practical problems with the notion of "executoriness," as well as a constructive way forward.

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