The role of the corporation in society is undergoing profound change. With a seismic shift towards the concentration of corporate ownership in the hands of institutional investors and the private ownership of companies, corporate boards and management are facing unprecedented shareholder and societal demands. This includes the proliferation of shareholder activism and institutional investor calls for sustainable investment strategies.
The mission of the Millstein Center is to positively shape and influence the future of the corporation in this new paradigm. Through engagement with business leaders, corporate boards, investors, the legal community and academics, the Center creates meaningful dialogue, while balancing conflicting points of view, to strengthen corporate governance and performance.
Podcasts from 2025
Podcast: Beyond Unprecedented S4 Ep4: Trump 2.0: Anticipating the Future of the SEC, Eric L. Talley, Dorothy S. Lund, and Mary Jo White
Publications from 2024
Article: "Don't Go Chasing Waterfalls": Fiduciary Duties in Venture Capital Backed Startups, Sarath Sanga and Eric L. Talley
Podcast: Beyond Unprecedented S4 Ep0: Reintroducing Beyond Unprecedented – Season 4, Eric L. Talley, Dorothy S. Lund, and Lauren Hirsch
Podcast: Beyond Unprecedented S4 Ep1: Business and Bots: Anticipating the Future of AI, Eric L. Talley, Dorothy S. Lund, and Kareem Yusuf
Podcast: Beyond Unprecedented S4 Ep2: Transportation of the Future: Market Drivers and Regulatory Roadblocks, Eric L. Talley, Dorothy S. Lund, and Xuan Di
Podcasts from 2023
Podcast: Beyond Unprecedented S3 Ep0: Reintroducing Beyond Unprecedented, Eric L. Talley, Talia B. Gillis, and Sujeet Indap
Podcast: Beyond Unprecedented S3 Ep1: Crypto in Crisis, Eric L. Talley, Talia B. Gillis, and Matt Levine
Podcast: Beyond Unprecedented S3 Ep2 ESG: Losing Its Cool, Eric L. Talley, Talia B. Gillis, Lynn Forester de Rothschild, and Jeff Ubben
Podcast: Beyond Unprecedented S3 Ep3: Boardroom Ballot Battles and the Universal Proxy, Eric L. Talley, Talia B. Gillis, and Keir Gumbs
Podcast: Beyond Unprecedented S3 Ep4: Inflation: Not Dead Yet, Eric L. Talley, Talia B. Gillis, and Huw Pill
Publications from 2022
Article: Contractual Evolution, Matthew Jennejohn, Julian Nyarko, and Eric L. Talley
Article: Duty and Diversity, Chris Bummer and Leo E. Strine Jr.
Article: Lifting Labor’s Voice: A Principled Path Toward Greater Worker Voice And Power Within American Corporate Governance, Leo E. Strine Jr., Aneil Kovvali, and Oluwatomi O. Williams
Report: The Future of Board Time and Priorities, Janet Foutty, Eric L. Talley, Carey Oven, Erica Mitnick Klein, Maureen Bujno, Katherine Waldock, Molly Calkins, Lyssa Bantleon Little, and Caroline Schoenecker
Publications from 2021
Article: Discharging the Discharge-for-Value Defense, Eric L. Talley
Article: Caremark and ESG, Perfect Together: A Practical Approach to Implementing an Integrated, Efficient, and Effective Caremark and EESG Strategy, Leo E. Strine Jr., Kirby M. Smith, and Reilly S. Steel
Article: Looking Back with a Legend: Ira Millstein Reflects on the Impact of Milton Friedman's Views on Corporate Governance, Eric L. Talley, Ira M. Millstein, and Leo E. Strine Jr.
Podcast: Beyond Unprecedented S2 Ep0: Reintroducing Beyond Unprecedented, Eric L. Talley, Kate Waldock, and Stacey Vanek Smith
Podcast: Beyond Unprecedented S2 Ep1: You Can’t Hire Me, I Quit!, Eric L. Talley, Kate Waldock, and Kate Andrias
Podcast: Beyond Unprecedented, S2 Ep2: Meme Stock Mania, Eric L. Talley, Kate Waldock, and Joshua Mitts
Podcast: Beyond Unprecedented S2 Ep3: The Rise – and Results – of Shareholder Activism, Eric L. Talley, Kate Waldock, and Anne E. Robinson
Podcast: Beyond Unprecedented S2 Ep4: Nothing Ventured, Nothing Gained, Eric L. Talley, Kate Waldock, Talia B. Gillis, and Alejandro Gerrero
Publications from 2020
Article: Board Compliance, John Armour, Brandon L. Garrett, Jeffrey N. Gordon, and Geeyoung Min
Article: Long-Term Bias, Eric L. Talley and Michal Barzuza
Article: Taking Compliance Seriously, John Armour, Jeffrey N. Gordon, and Geeyoung Min
Book Chapter: COVID-19 as a Force Majeure in Corporate Transactions, Matthew Jennejohn, Julian Nyarko, and Eric L. Talley
Podcast: Beyond "Unprecedented" S1 Ep0: Introduction, Eric L. Talley
Podcast: Beyond "Unprecedented" S1 Ep1: Essential – and Broke, Eric L. Talley, Katharina Pistor, and Michael J. Graetz
Podcast: Beyond "Unprecedented" S1 Ep2: Can the Fed Rescue Us?, Eric L. Talley, Peter Conti-Brown, and Kathryn Judge
Podcast: Beyond "Unprecedented" S1 Ep3: A New Chapter for Bankruptcy?, Eric L. Talley, Edward R. Morrison, and Kate Waldock
Podcast: Beyond "Unprecedented" S1 Ep4: Helping Small Businesses Survive – and Thrive, Eric L. Talley, Lynnise E. Pantin, and Tim Wu
Podcast: Beyond "Unprecedented" S1 Ep5: A Shareholder-Stakeholder Smackdown, Eric L. Talley, Ira M. Millstein, and Leo E. Strine Jr.
Podcast: Beyond "Unprecedented" S1 Ep6: Pandemic Pressures on Global Trade, Eric L. Talley, Anu Bradford, and Petros C. Mavroidis
Report: Annual Report 2019-2020, Ira M. Millstein Center for Global Markets and Corporate Ownership
Report: Global Investor-Director Survey on Climate Risk Management, Kristin Bresnahan, Jens Frankenreiter, Sophie L'Helias, Brea Hinricks, Nina Hodzic, Julian Nyarko, Sneha Pandya, and Eric L. Talley
Publications from 2019
Article: A Computational Analysis of Constitutional Polarization, David E. Pozen, Eric L. Talley, and Julian Nyarko
Article: Active Firms and Active Shareholders: Corporate Political Activity and Shareholder Proposals, Geeyoung Min and Hye Young You
Article: Board 3.0: An Introduction, Ronald J. Gilson and Jeffrey N. Gordon
Article: China as a "National Strategic Buyer": Toward a Multilateral Regime for Cross-Border M&A, Jeffrey N. Gordon and Curtis J. Milhaupt
Article: Informed Trading and Cybersecurity Breaches, Joshua Mitts and Eric L. Talley
Article: Insulation by Separation: When Dual-Class Stock Met Corporate Spin-Offs, Young Ran Kim and Geeyoung Min
Article: The Death of Corporate Law, Zohar Goshen and Sharon Hannes
Article: The Limits of Smart Contracts, Jens Frankenreiter
Paper: Private Ownership at a Public Crossroads: Studying the Rapidly Evolving World of Corporate Ownership, Ira M. Millstein Center for Global Markets and Corporate Ownership
Report: Annual Report 2018, Ira M. Millstein Center for Global Markets and Corporate Ownership
Working Paper: Being True to Trulia: Do Disclosure-Only Settlements in Merger Objection Lawsuits Harm Shareholders?, Eric L. Talley and Giuseppe Dari‐Mattiacci
Working Paper: Liability Design for Autonomous Vehicles and Human-Driven Vehicles: A Hierarchical Game-Theoretic Approach, Xuan Di, Xu Chen, and Eric L. Talley
Publications from 2018
Article: Contractarian Theory and Unilateral Bylaw Amendments, Albert H. Choi and Geeyoung Min
Article: Is Corporate Governance a First Order Cause of the Current Malaise?, Jeffrey N. Gordon
Article: Shareholder Voice in Corporate Charter Amendments, Geeyoung Min
Document: Environmental and Social Sustainability in the Boardroom, Jon Lukomnik
Document: The Changing Landscape of the Capital Markets, Barbara Krumsiek
Paper: Greater Expectations: Strategies for Effective Board Meeting Preparation, Jonathan Kim and Marcel Bucsescu
Working Paper: The Origins of a Capital Market Union in the United States, Jeffrey N. Gordon and Kathryn Judge
Publications from 2017
Article: Contracting Out of the Fiduciary Duty of Loyalty: An Empirical Analysis of Corporate Opportunity Waivers, Gabriel Rauterberg and Eric L. Talley
Article: Principal Costs: A New Theory for Corporate Law and Governance, Zohar Goshen and Richard Squire
Document: Adapting Global Standards to a Changing World, Serdar Çelik and Mats Isaksson
Document: Short-Termism, Douglas Chia
Paper: Board Excellence and Fiduciary Duties of Corporate Directors, E. Norman Veasey and Ira M. Millstein
Paper: Fiduciary Duties of Corporate Directors in Uncertain Times, Ellen J. Odoner, Stephen A. Radin, Lyuba A. Goltser, and Andrew E. Blumberg
Report: Report from the General Counsel Summit on Short-Termism and Public Trust, Ira M. Millstein Center for Global Markets and Corporate Ownership
Publications from 2016
Paper: Discussion on Transparent and Effective Disclosure, Ira M. Millstein Center for Global Markets and Corporate Ownership
Paper: Inversions: Implications for Tax Planning, Tax Policy, and Corporate Governance, Ira M. Millstein Center for Global Markets and Corporate Ownership
Paper: Key Topics in Corporate Governance: Disclosure, Ira M. Millstein Center for Global Markets and Corporate Ownership
Paper: On the Use and Misuse of Stock Price, Ira M. Millstein Center for Global Markets and Corporate Ownership
Paper: Proxy Access 2.0: A Recap on 1.0 and the Economic Analysis, Ira M. Millstein Center for Global Markets and Corporate Ownership
Paper: The Future of Finance Colloquium, Ira M. Millstein Center for Global Markets and Corporate Ownership
Working Paper: Appraising the "Merger Price" Appraisal Rule, Albert H. Choi and Eric L. Talley
Publications from 2015
Article: Bank Resolution in the European Banking Union: A Transatlantic Perspective on What It Would Take, Jeffrey N. Gordon and Wolf-Georg Ringe
Publications from 2014
Article: State Contract Law and Debt Contracts, Colleen Honigsberg, Sharon Katz, and Gil Sadka
Article: Systemic Harms and Shareholder Value, John Armour and Jeffrey N. Gordon
Article: The Empty Call for Benefit-Cost Analysis in Financial Regulation, Jeffrey N. Gordon
Article: Toward a Constitutional Review of the Poison Pill, Lucian A. Bebchuk and Robert J. Jackson Jr.
Article: Toward a Constitutional Review of the Poison Pill Essay, Lucian A. Bebchuk and Robert J. Jackson Jr.
Paper: Changes in Ownership: Beyond the Berle-Means Paradigm, Ira M. Millstein Center for Global Markets and Corporate Ownership
Publications from 2013
Article: Conscience, Incorporated, James D. Nelson
Article: Pre-Disclosure Accumulations by Activist Investors: Evidence and Policy, Lucian A. Bebchuk, Alon Brav, Robert J. Jackson Jr., and Wei Jiang
Article: The Agency Costs of Agency Capitalism: Activist Investors and the Revaluation of Governance Rights, Ronald J. Gilson and Jeffrey N. Gordon
Publications from 2012
Paper: Codes of Corporate Governance: A Review, Nolan Haskovec
Publications from 2011
Paper: Are Institutional Investors Part of the Problem or Part of the Solution?: Key Descriptive and Prescriptive Questions About Shareholders, Ben W. Heineman Jr. and Stephen Davis
Paper: Chairmanship: The Effective Chair-CEO Relationship: Insight from the Boardroom, Elise Walton
Publications from 2009
Report: Agenda for Private Sector Reform: Omnibus Policy Recommendations for a Post-Crisis Market, Millstein Center for Corporate Governance and Performance
Report: Chairing the Board: The Case for Independent Leadership in Corporate North America, Millstein Center for Corporate Governance and Performance
Report: Pay, Risk and Stewardship: Private Sector Architecture for Future Capital Markets, Mariana Pargendler
Report: Voting Integrity: Practices for Investors and the Global Proxy Advisory Industry, Meagan Thompson-Mann
Publications from 2008
Report: Talking Governance: Board-Shareowner Communications on Executive Compensation, Stephen Davis and Stephen Alogna
Publications from 2007
Report: Does "Say on Pay" Work? Lessons on Making CEO Compensation Accountable, Stephen Davis