Timothy Cook, Apple CEO, and Shay (right)
Shay testifies at Apple hearing
For the second time this year, Professor of Practice Stephen Shay testified on offshore profit shifting and the U.S. tax code before the Homeland Security & Governmental Affairs Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations. At the hearing, which included testimony from Apple CEO Timothy Cook, the subcommittee continued its examination of the structures and methods employed by multinational corporations to shift profits offshore. Shay joined the law school faculty after extensive experience developing and overseeing implementation of U.S. international tax policy.
Experts and judges convene on intellectual property
The biennial Harvard Law School Conference on Intellectual Property Law attracted scores of IP lawyers, businesspeople, academicians and judges to the school April 12 to discuss recent developments in IP law. According to William W. Fisher, the WilmerHale Professor of Intellectual Property Law at HLS and co-chair of the event since its inception 10 years ago, the purpose of the conference is to stimulate discussion of IP law through a variety of mechanisms. This year’s conference featured a keynote speech by Quentin Palfrey ’02, former senior adviser at the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy, and an opportunity for attendees to examine current IP issues through participation in two case-study groups. Six federal circuit and district court judges also provided insights into the workings of their courts and advice to lawyers.
An oath to the Constitution, aboard the Constitution
Cmdr. Mike Adams LL.M. ’13 oversaw the commissioning ceremony of (L-R) Joshua Fiveson ’14, Lee Hiromoto ’13 and Jordi Torres ’13, who were commissioned as officers of the Navy JAG Corps in a ceremony aboard the USS Constitution, in Boston, on May 14. Lt. Cmdr. Greg Saybolt LL.M. ’13 and Lt. Cmdr. Matt Ivey LL.M. ’13, both lawyers in the U.S. Navy and members of the JAG Corps, were also involved in the ceremony.
Dukakis on the importance of building consensus
According to former Massachusetts Gov. Michael Dukakis ’60, tackling most public policy challenges begins with the same steps: “Make a list. Create a working group. Bring these folks together. See if you can at least begin by getting agreement on what the problem is. If you do that, you’re halfway to a solution.”
Former Massachusetts Gov. Michael Dukakis ’60
Dukakis, who was the Democratic nominee for president in 1988 and is now a professor of political science at Northeastern University, visited a session of Harvard Law School’s Negotiation Workshop in late April to lead a discussion of a case study and answer student questions. Along the way, he shared anecdotes from his time as the longest-serving governor of Massachusetts and ideas about negotiation gleaned from a long career in public life.
More broadly, Dukakis urged students in the workshop to enter the public sector and use their skills to build consensus around important public policy issues.
“There’s nothing like it,” he said. “To be in a position where you can make a difference in the lives of your fellow citizens is one of the rare privileges of public life.”
Morgan and Helen Chu commit $5 million to Harvard Law School
Gift will endow chair to be held by the dean of the faculty
Morgan Chu ’76 and Helen Chu
Morgan Chu, one of the nation’s pre-eminent intellectual property lawyers, and his wife, Helen Chu, have given $5 million to Harvard Law School to establish in perpetuity the chair held by the dean of the faculty at HLS. The inaugural Morgan and Helen Chu Dean’s Professorship, which will be held by Dean Martha Minow, “will demonstrate a commitment to excellence, innovation and public service honoring some of the most brilliant legal minds of our time,” said Morgan Chu, a 1976 graduate of the Law School.
A partner at Irell & Manella in Los Angeles, he is a zealous advocate for pro bono legal representation and the longest-serving member of the board of directors of the Public Counsel Law Center, the nation’s largest not-for-profit public interest law firm. Helen Chu, a public school teacher for decades, said, “Nothing is more important than education at all levels, and we are pleased to make an investment for the long-term future that will outlive both of us.”
Playing hardball
HLS students advised Major League Baseball executives on negotiating an amateur draft.
Tasked with providing strategic advice for a Major League Baseball negotiation aimed at the implementation of an international amateur draft, six teams of Harvard Law School students participated in a semester-long project, competing for the opportunity to present their findings to MLB executives. Clinical Professor Robert Bordone ’97 developed the capstone consulting project with MLB for his course, Advanced Negotiation: Multiparty Negotiation, Group Decision Making, and Teams, co-taught with Lecturer on Law Rory Van Loo ’07. The winning team of Jonathan Bennett ’12, Alexis Beveridge ’13, Tarik Elhussein ’13, Chris Davis ’14 and Jae In Kim ’13 (pictured left to right) with Van Loo, traveled to New York City to deliver their presentation to MLB executives, including Robert Manfred ’83, executive vice president of economics and league affairs.