Michael Simkovic
USC Gould School of Law

Michael Simkovic’s research focuses on the intersection between law and finance, with a particular emphasis on credit markets, financial regulation, and taxation. His work has been published in leading journals including The University of Chicago Law Review, The Journal of Corporate Finance and the Journal of Legal Studies.

In 2015, he received the American Law Institute’s Young Scholars Medal and became an elected member of the American Law Institute. For four years in a row, he was voted among the most influential in legal education by National Jurist Magazine. He was the recipient of the American College of Consumer Financial Services Lawyers Writing Award in 2012. Simkovic has testified before the U.S. House Judiciary Committee and has served as an expert on consumer and corporate finance issues.

Prior to joining the USC Gould faculty, Simkovic worked as an attorney at Davis Polk & Wardwell in New York and a strategy consultant at McKinsey & Company, specializing in legal, regulatory and business issues affecting financial services companies.

He is a frequent contributor to Brian Leiter’s Law School Reports and has published in The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times Dealbook, The Washington Post, and Bloomberg. His work has been cited by federal regulators and in publications such as The New York Times, The Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, Bloomberg, The Atlantic, and USA Today. He has appeared on CBS and Marketplace Weekend.

Simkovic has presented his research at the American Law & Economics Association Conference, the Conference on Empirical Legal Studies, the National Tax Association, and at Harvard University, Stanford University, Yale University, New York University, Columbia University, University of Pennsylvania, UC Berkeley, Duke University, Northwestern University, University of Virginia, UCLA, and USC.

Simkovic earned his JD at Harvard Law School, where he was an Olin Fellow in law and economics.  

Works in Progress

• Measuring Regulation - (SSRN)

Articles and Book Chapters

• "Mutual Funds that Borrow,"(with A. Joseph Warburton) Journal of Empirical Legal Studies 16 (2019): __ .  - (SSRN)
• "Bounties for Errors: Market Testing Contracts," (with Robert K. Rasmussen) 10 Harvard Business Law Review 10 (2019): __. - (SSRN)
• "Making Fraudulent Transfer Law More Predictable," forthcoming in Handbook on Corporate Bankcruptcy, Barry Adler, ed. (Edward Elgar 2019). - (SSRN)
• "Value of a Law Degree by College Major," (with Frank McIntyre) forthcoming, Journal of Legal Education (2019). - (SSRN)
• "Limited Liability and the Known Unknown," Duke Law Journal 68 (2018): 275. - (SSRN) - (Hein)
• "Are Law Degrees as Valuable to Minorities?" (with Frank McIntyre). International Review of Law and Economics 53 (2018): 23. - (SSRN) - (www)
• “The Evolution of Valuation in Bankruptcy.” American Bankruptcy Law Journal 91 (2017): 299. - (Hein) - (SSRN)
• “Timing Law School” (with Frank McIntyre). Journal of Empirical Legal Studies 14 (2017): 258. - (SSRN) - (www)
• “A Value-Added Perspective on Higher Education.” U.C. Irvine Law Review 7 (2017): 123. - (SSRN) - (Hein)
• “What Can We Learn from Credit Markets?” American Law Institute Proceedings 93 (2016): 134. - (SSRN)
• “Taxes, Subsidies, and Knowledge: A Reply to Professor Oei.” University of Chicago Law Review Online 83 (2016): 82. - (SSRN) - (Hein)
• “The Knowledge Tax.” University Of Chicago Law Review 82 (2015): 1981. - (SSRN) - (Hein)
• “The Economic Value of a Law Degree” (with Frank McIntyre). Journal of Legal Studies 43 (2014): 249. - (www)
• “Populist Outrage, Reckless Empirics: A Review of Failing Law Schools” (with Frank McIntyre). Northwestern University Law Review Online 108 (2014): 176. - (SSRN) - (www)
• “Risk-Based Student Loans.” Washington & Lee Law Review 70 (2013): 527. - (SSRN) - (Hein)
• “Competition and Crisis in Mortgage Securitization.” Indiana Law Journal 88 (2013): 213. - (SSRN) - (Hein)
• “The Effects of Ownership and Stock Liquidity on the Timing of Repurchase Transactions” (with Amedeo de Cesari, Susanne Espenlaub & Arif Khurshed). Journal of Corporate Finance 18 (2012): 1023. - (SSRN) - (www)
• “Leveraged Buyout Bankruptcies, the Problem of Hindsight Bias, and the Credit Default Swap Solution” (with Benjamin S. Kaminetzky). Columbia Business Law Review 2011 (2011): 118. - (SSRN) - (Hein)
• “Paving the Way for the Next Financial Crisis.” Banking & Financial Services Policy Report 29 (2010): 1. - (SSRN) - (www)
• “Credit Card Reform and Bankruptcy Reform.” Norton Bankruptcy Law Adviser 10 (2009): 1. - (SSRN)
• “Secret Liens and the Financial Crisis of 2008.” American Bankruptcy Law Journal 83 (2009): 253. - (SSRN) - (Hein)
• “The Effect BAPCPA on Credit Card Industry Profits and Prices.” American Bankruptcy Law Journal 83 (2009): 1. - (SSRN) - (Hein)
• “The Effect of Mandatory Disclosure on Open Market Stock Repurchases.” Berkeley Business Law Journal 6 (2009): 96. - (Hein) - (SSRN)

FACULTY IN THE NEWS

LLM Guide
June 5, 2023
Re: USC Gould School of Law

Law schools have been adapting to the increase in technological advancements, especially with the increased need for attorneys with the creation of AI. “Attorneys work on the front end, conducting threat assessments to ensure that their clients’ systems and data are protected, and on the back end, to navigate any legal issues that may arise as a result of the attacks," Gruzas said.

RECENT SCHOLARSHIP

Robin Craig
May, 2023

"Did Sackett Bring Clarity to 'Waters of the United States'?," 54:6 Trends (forthcoming July/August 2023) (accepted May 31, 2023).

Robin Craig
May, 2023

"Tribal Water Rights and Tribal Health: the Klamath Tribes and the Navajo Nation During the Covid-19 Pandemic," 16 Saint Louis University Journal of Health Law & Policy 35 (published 2023), was summarized and promoted on the Race, Racism, and the Law website run by Professor Vernellia Randall, University of Dayton School of Law.

Robin Craig
May, 2023

"Governing Shifting Species and Changing Ecosystems: What role Might Ecological Grief Play?," keynote address at the Species on the Move 2023 International Conference, Bonito Springs, Florida, on May 19, 2023.