Dr. John Coffee

Biography

John C. Coffee Jr. is the Adolf Berle Professor of Law at Columbia Law School, where he has taught since 1980. A recognized authority in the fields of securities law, corporate governance, white collar crime, complex litigation, and class actions, he is a prolific scholar, sought-after speaker, and frequently quoted in the media. Coffee has published multiple scholarly books and co-authored widely used casebooks in securities regulation and business organizations. His notable awards include the Donald Cressey Award, which he received for his lifetime achievements in the field of white collar crime, and the Allen & Overy Law Prize for his paper exploring conflicts of interest among activist investors and shareholders. He has served on significant committees including the American Law Institute and the Legal Advisory Committees of the New York Stock Exchange, and his commentary regularly appears in publications like the New York Law Journal and the Wall Street Journal. As director of the Center for Corporate Governance, he coordinates expert conferences on finance law and is an expert witness in the Securities Exchange Commission and Delaware courts. He has earned a reputation as a leading legal scholar cited extensively in the area of corporate business law.

Research Interests