Law and Business

Program of Study Faculty Leaders

Allen Ferrell

Jesse Fried

Louis Kaplow

Guhan Subramanian

Program of Study Research Librarian

Lisa Junghahn

To view the recent faculty advising session on the Law and Business Program of Study, click here.

Overview

Lawyers practicing in business-related areas – corporate law, real estate, tax, business litigation, many areas of government regulation, and aspects of nonprofit representation – need to acquire skills in three areas: basic analytics (accounting, finance, economics), an appreciation of transactions, and relevant fields of law. Most courses at HLS fall in the latter area, and a major benefit of all such courses is that they indirectly expose students to principles in the former two areas. For example, a course in Antitrust will enhance understanding of mergers, vertical distribution arrangements, and other market interactions. Most of what follows concerns courses in business law per se. Regarding basic analytics, it is very useful to take Analytical Methods for Lawyers (especially if your background in economics and finance is not strong) and/or courses at HLS or at other schools in Accounting, Finance, and Economics. Additionally, occasional offerings such as Real Estate Transactions – often best appreciated after taking some business law courses – are quite helpful in the second area. Courses in negotiation can be helpful regarding both analytics and transactions, in addition to being directly valuable. Students interested in Law and Business should also consider the joint JD/MBA program with Harvard Business School.

Foundational Courses in Business Law

Corporations, taken by many students whether interested in pursuing a career in business law or not, is the base on which all advanced corporate and related courses build, and is a prerequisite or recommended course in related areas (such as Corporate Tax).

Corporations is taught by HLS professors Clark, Coates, Hanson, Kraakman, Ramseyer, Roe, and Subramanian. Each version of the basic course is similar, but content, focus, and approach may vary significantly from professor to professor and over time.

Likewise, all students interested in business law (and in most other legal careers) should take Taxation, another course taken by many HLS students. Taxation permeates nearly all areas of law practice (including litigation, family law, and work with nonprofits), so tax literacy is a minimal, but significant, requirement.  Taxation is taught by HLS professors Alstott, Halperin, Kaplow, and Warren, as well as visitors with a variety of backgrounds. The content, focus, and approach of these courses is fairly similar.

For students with no intention of becoming "corporate lawyers" or even general business lawyers, Corporations and Taxation provide an understanding of the legal regimen under which most business is conducted in the U.S., the rules that determine when corporations and corporate officials may be held liable, the ways in which corporations are likely to respond to regulation or litigation, and how various corporate activities are taxed (although the latter requires more advanced study as well). Such an understanding is valuable for litigators, government officials, prosecutors, criminal defense lawyers, and legal services attorneys, not to mention investment bankers, business consultants and entrepreneurs. Additionally, non-profits (such as Harvard University) are organized as "corporations."

Business law practice varies substantially, even for "corporate lawyers," and because practice is increasingly both specialized and changeable, it is difficult to give strong guidance about what courses to take beyond the basics. Students should know that many large law firms expect attorneys to spend almost all their time on corporate transactional work (this is what "corporate lawyer" means to most practitioners). Some firms specialize in deals involving large public companies, often heavily regulated by industry and always subject to extensive federal securities regulation. For this reason Securities Regulation is often a useful course for students to take. Other firms primarily represent private or family-owned corporations, for which tax or estate planning often takes precedence over securities law. Corporations themselves offer full time, in-house legal practice involving transactional work and a variety of more general "corporate" legal questions, ranging from employment and labor law to intellectual property law to commercial law.

It will be rare for students to know which type of practice they will end up pursuing. Students thinking of Wall Street law firms or investment banks may want more exposure to corporate finance, securities, and international issues. Students thinking of a law firm in a large or mid-sized regional city, or an eventual move "in-house," may want more exposure to courses relevant to employment disputes, lending relationships, and real estate transactions. As noted, general tools like accounting, business planning, contract negotiation, valuation and basic statistics may benefit lawyers in a wide range of practice areas. The Analytical Methods course is an effective way for students to build these skills.

HLS offers a variety of business law and related courses, and students should remain flexible to take advantage of special courses offered by visiting professors or in the Winter Term. Consultation with professors teaching in the field should be helpful in making course selections. 

Intermediate Corporate Law Courses

Two possible intermediate courses that build on Corporations are Securities Regulation and Corporate Finance.

Securities Regulation covers the federal laws and regulations governing the public offering, sale and trading of stocks and other types of securities, and thus is the primary course focusing on initial public offerings (IPOs) and the process of "going public." The approach is primarily statutory and regulatory, covering the Securities Act of 1933, important elements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, and an overview of the work of the SEC.

Corporate Finance provides a theory- and policy-oriented approach to important, advanced topics affecting corporations, including valuation (discounting, net present value, uncertainty), debtholders' rights (protective covenants, debt/equity conflicts), reorganization and bankruptcy, and hostile takeovers. It examines advanced topics in corporate law from a perspective informed by economics and finance. The two principal areas of law covered in the course are (1) relations between corporate debtholders and equity holders, both in the solvent firm and in bankruptcy, and (2) mergers and acquisitions. Both topics are addressed in some depth, although not with as much attention as they would receive in entire courses devoted to corporate reorganizations or mergers and acquisitions. In addition, corporate finance provides a brief introduction to financial economics, including discounting, analysis of risk, pricing models, and market efficiency. This course is not a substitute for financial economics as this would be taught at the MIT Sloan School or Kennedy School, however.

Antitrust Law is another valuable course in this area. Professor Elhauge’s course includes treatment of European Community competition law that also regulates firms on today's global markets.

In addition, there are a number of courses that might be of interest to those studying business law offered throughout Harvard University. The Business School, for example, regularly offers courses on valuation and finance theory.

Advanced Corporate Law Courses

Each of the following courses covers advanced areas of corporate law practice in more detail, using a variety of methodological approaches. Not all courses listed below are offered each year.

Mergers & Acquisitions, taught by Professor Clark, Professor Coates, and Professor Subramanian, covers corporate and securities law issues relevant to mergers and acquisitions of large public companies, including the Williams Act, proxy rules, state case law, and important forms of private ordering (such as poison pills, lockups, and earnouts). It also touches on basics of accounting, tax, and antitrust relevant to a lawyer working on such transactions. The approach is practical rather than theoretical, and the focus is on law, not finance. In addition, Negotiation: Deal Design and Implementation, offered on occasion by Professor Subramanian, focuses on the negotiation of corporate deals generally.

Corporate Theory, offered regularly by Professor Kraakman and on occasion by Professor Elhauge, Corporate Control, offered regularly by Professor Coates, and Corporate Law & Policy, offered on occasion by Professor Bebchuk, are similar discussion/reading seminars that focus on advanced, current or ongoing research on corporate legal issues. Topics vary from year to year but have included policy analysis of takeover law, limited liability, ownership and financial structure.

International Finance Seminar, offered by Professor Scott, is intended for students who are interested in international finance and the structure of financial regulation in an increasingly globalized economy. 

Regulation of Financial Institutions, offered in some years by Professor Jackson, covers broker-dealer regulation, insurance regulation and banking regulation.

Regulation of Financial Markets, offered in some years by Professors Jackson and Scott, covers the stock and commodities exchanges and the government agencies charged with regulating them. Corporate Finance should be taken prior to this seminar.

Advanced Taxation Courses

Corporate Transactions, often called Corporate Tax, is the advanced tax course taken most often by those who go beyond the basic Taxation course, which is a prerequisite. Corporations is strongly recommended as a preparation. Corporate Tax provides a useful perspective on the motivation and structure for many corporate transactions. Partnership Taxation, which addresses taxation of pass-through entities, including limited liability companies, may also be useful. The growth of such organizations in recent years has made partnership taxation of greater importance for start-ups, buyout funds, and other closely-held entities. Additionally, with the increasingly multinational nature of business activities, International Tax has become ever more valuable.

For those interested in being tax lawyers per se, you should certainly take every tax course offered (or nearly so), including Trusts and Estates. In addition, most tax practice is in connection with other activity, so it is important to take other courses such as Corporations and some more advanced offerings as well as courses in other areas ranging from pensions and family law to the law of nonprofits.

Bankruptcy and Commercial Law Courses

Much business law practice, whether centered on corporations or real estate deals, is greatly concerned with financing. Accordingly, it is helpful to know the law pertaining to creditor-debtor relationships, both in the ordinary course of business (Commercial Law: Secured Transactions) and in the event of business distress (Bankruptcy; Bankruptcy and Corporate Reorganizations).

International/Comparative Law Courses

In addition to the basic and core U.S.-centered courses described above, HLS offers several courses on advanced corporate law topics with an international or comparative dimension.

International Finance examines policies and regulation affecting cross-border banking and securities transactions in three major markets, the United States, the European Union and Japan.

International Trade Law examines explores the fundamental principles of international trade rules, the relationship between trade and environmental concerns, and domestic remedies to international trade violations.

Seminars

HLS offers a number of research, writing and discussion seminars on a variety of corporate law and related topics. Below is a sampling of the seminars and reading groups most directly related to corporate law. A number of other seminars (such as the Law & Economics workshop) often take up corporate law or related topics. (Not all seminars listed are offered each year.) These seminars, covering a broad range of topics, include Bankruptcy and Corporate Reorganization; Capital Markets; Comparative Corporate Law: Governance in the U.S. and Western Europe; Corporate Governance; Corporate Governance in East Asia; Dispute Systems Design; Innovative Contracting; International Finance Seminar; Law and Business Problems; Law and Economics; Laws, Markets and Religions; Nonprofit Sector and Philanthropy; Research in Corporate Governance; and Taxation and Regulation of Nonprofit Organizations.

Clinical Offerings

Business and Non-Profit Clinic

The Business and Non-Profit Clinic engages students in a wide range of transactional legal work including entity formations, contract drafting, sales and acquisitions, licensing, corporate governance, intellectual property matters, and many other kinds of hands-on practice-based legal experiences. Students are immersed in an applied learning context, counseling and representing transactional clients under the supervision of an experienced practitioner. Enrollment in the clinic is through the Transactional Practice Clinical Workshop.

Associated Areas of the Law

Students interested in a possible career in corporate law should, as suggested previously, strongly consider one or more of the following related areas.

Introduction to Accounting and Corporate Financial Reports: Students who have no background in accounting and contemplate a career in corporate law should take this module and should also consider taking Financial Statement Analysis for Lawyers: Getting Behind the Numbers.

Negotiation/Mediation/ADR: A common and important function of corporate practitioners is to represent clients in negotiations and settlements with other corporations, employees, and government agencies. Students interested in corporate law should consider taking one of HLS's many courses and workshops in negotiations and related fields.

Employment/Labor Law, Intellectual Property Law, and International Law (especially finance and trade) are areas of the law that all business lawyers encounter from time to time, and which some corporate lawyers encounter routinely. Students preparing for a business law practice should consider taking one or more representative courses in these fields.

Law and Economics: Economic analysis is also an important element of business. Students should consider taking one or more of the Law School's law-and-economics offerings, such as Economic Analysis of Law taught by Professor Shavell.  Also, as noted, economics-oriented seminars at HLS usually devote attention to corporate and related research topics.

Regulatory Law/Regulation: Although not limited to corporate law problems, Administrative Law is valuable to corporate lawyers who will find it important to understand the processes of law-making and application by the executive and independent regulatory agencies, as well as the forces that influence how regulators behave and the evolution of regulatory regimes.

Academic Careers

Students who wish to pursue academic careers in this area should think about combining the course work discussed above with opportunities for significant research and writing.