[S]upporting under-resourced entrepreneurs, and low-income entrepreneurs is still vital, but it cannot be the only solution to promoting economic justice. The fact that entrepreneurship will not resolve the disparities in opportunity leftover from Jim Crow and the legacy of slavery should
W&L’S Blue Mountain Writing Retreat – Call for Submissions
Washington and Lee University School of Law (“W&L Law”) invites up to ten tenure-track or tenured legal scholars to join its faculty for an intensive four-day writing retreat at House Mountain Inn located in the Shenandoah Valley, a home to artists, artisans, and scholars alike. Nestled high atop the slopes of Big House Mountain, the House Mountain Inn offers 1,000 private acres of mountain preserve with breathtaking views of the surrounding natural beauty. The scenic location offers the ideal setting for this retreat dedicated to intensive academic writing, meaningful peer engagement, and the cultivation of long-term professional relationships among leading legal scholars from across the country. This retreat reflects the W&L Law faculty’s deep dedication to advancing impactful legal scholarship and its commitment to nurturing curiosity, collaboration, and community.
The 2026 Writing Retreat will meet from Sunday, June 14, to Thursday, June 18, 2026. Attendees are asked to join the retreat for its full duration in order to support a shared, immersive writing experience for all participants.
FUNDING
W&L Law will provide lodging and meals for all attendees at House Mountain Inn for four nights, plus a travel stipend up to $500. Funding for the retreat is generously provided by
Thomas & Zhang: Crypto Kleptocracy
But this Essay is not about Trump. Crypto creates new channels for public corruption that operate on autopilot, generating wealth without transactions, contracts,
Call for Papers – Tribal Energy Law, Environmental Justice, and Climate Change Symposium
Please see the call for papers here from friend-of-the-BLPB Paolo Farah. Abstract submissions are due December 20, 2025. According to the the call for papers, “[t]his symposium aims to bridge disciplines and communities, fostering dialogue between law, policy, science, and industry in advancing tribal energy sovereignty and climate resilience. We invite you to contribute your voice and expertise to this important conversation.”
ESG and Insider Trading
This Article preliminarily explores the contours of ESG information as a potential basis for unlawful insider trading under Section 10(b) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and Rule 10b-5 adopted by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission under Section 10(b). Insider trading violations under Section 10(b) and Rule 10b-5 are rooted in a person’s (1) trading of securities while in possession of material
Some Good Personal/Professional News for the Weekend
Earlier this week, The University of Tennessee Frank Winston College of Law (yes, a new name, with a great story behind it!) announced my appointment as the incoming director of the Clayton Center for Entrepreneurial Law. You can find the full story here. I posted the news on social media earlier in the week. Thanks to those of you who commented and contacted me in response to those posts.
As I said there and have told many of you, I am truly excited to take on this new role for the academic program in which I have worked for 25 years–the program that brought me to Tennessee and the College of Law in 2000 after nearly 15 years of practice up in Boston, Massachusetts. I assume the directorship on August 1. I am grateful to the center’s interim director, Brian Krumm, who has ably managed the center since the 2024 retirement of longtime director George Kuney.
The Clayton Center is rooted in entrepreneurship, being the namesake of James L. Clayton, a 1964 graduate of the Winston College of Law who is the founder of Knoxville-based Clayton Homes, Inc., now a subsidiary of Berkshire Hathaway Inc.
Stetson Business Law Review – Seeking Submissions
Call for Submissions – Spring 2026 Issue
Stetson Business Law Review
The Stetson Business Law Review is now accepting submissions for our Spring 2026 Issue: Volume 5, Issue 2. We welcome article proposals and complete manuscripts from professors, practitioners, judges, and scholars working in all areas of business law and related disciplines.
This is an open issue, meaning we are accepting submissions on all topics within the broad field of business law. We especially encourage submissions that either (1) promulgate a novel theory or approach to a business law issue, and/or (2) provide practical insights for practitioners, particularly those practicing in Florida.
Submissions will be reviewed on a rolling basis. To be considered for the Spring 2026 issue, we recommend submission by December 15, 2025.
About the Journal
The Stetson Business Law Review is a student-edited publication at Stetson University College of Law with a mission of publishing high-quality scholarly works on topics arising in any field related to business legal theories, influential court cases, and relevant national or Florida controversies.
How to Submit
Submissions may be made via Scholastica or emailed directly to jbonjorn@law.stetson.edu with “Spring 2026 Submission” in the subject line. Please include a CV along with
Artificial Fiduciaries
The rapid development of technology in the last decade has affected all levels of society. Corporate governance has not been immune to these changes. In the future, Artificial Intelligence (“AI”) fiduciaries may be technologically capable of serving as independent corporate directors. This could be an effective way to address the challenge of the absence of truly independent directors in the traditional governance framework. Artificial fiduciaries could also
Bocconi July Corporate Governance Workshop: ESG Information and Compliance
Last month I had the privilege of presenting some of my current work at Bocconi University in Milan, Italy. The promotional poster for the event is included below. All of the workshop presentations (present company excepted) were engaging.
I presented on part of an ongoing research project–a series of papers on environmental, social, and governance (ESG) information. The first two papers on the series, The Materiality of ESG Information: Why It May MatterT, 84 LSU L. Rev. 1365 (2024), and ESG and Insider Trading: Legal and Practical Considerations, 26 U. Penn. J. Bus. L. __ (forthcoming 2024), address the significance of ESG information under the U.S. federal securities laws and the potential and actual involvement of ESG information in insider trading. In Milan, I shared my ideas and preliminary research for a third paper currently titled Corporate Information Compliance in an ESG World. I expect to turn to work on this paper in earnest in the coming months. I will briefly lay out my current thoughts here in the hope that you may have some feedback.
ESG information plays a role in many business operational settings that are invoked in legal compliance and addressed in compliance policies
AALS 2025 – Section on Agency, Etc. – Calls for Papers
AALS Section on Agency, Partnerships, LLCs, and Unincorporated Associations
Calls for Papers
The AALS Section on Agency, Partnerships, LLCs, and Unincorporated Associations is pleased to announce two calls for papers, one for a panel presentation and one for a works-in progress session geared to workshopping the research and writing of junior faculty.
Panel Presentation:
Up to three paper presenters will be selected for the section’s principal panel to be held during the AALS 2025 Annual Meeting in San Francisco, CA. The program is entitled Technology’s Intersection with Agency, Partnerships, and Unincorporated Associations. Co-Sponsored by the Sections on Technology, Law and Legal Education and Transactional Law and Skills, the session is designed to explore research and teaching involving the interactions of principal/agent relationships, partnerships, and unincorporated business associations with artificial intelligence, blockchains, cybersecurity, and other technological developments.
Works-in-Progress Session:
The section seeks paper proposals from junior scholars for a works-in-progress program. Submissions for this session may relate to any topic within the scope of the law governing agency, partnerships, LLCs, or unincorporated associations.
Submission Information:
To respond to either or both calls for papers, please submit a substantial abstract (five or more pages) or draft of an unpublished paper to