Lawrence Cunningham
Director, Weinberg Center for Corporate Governance | University of Delaware
Newark, DE, UNITED STATES
Expert on corporate governance, as well as corporate culture and law.
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Biography
Cunningham has written dozens of books and scores of articles on a wide range of subjects in law and business. These include best-selling books such as The Essays of Warren Buffett (in collaboration with Warren Buffett) and The AIG Story (written with Hank Greenberg) and influential research articles on accounting and corporate governance. Before retiring from GW in 2022 at age 60, Cunningham founded and for many years directed GWNY, GW Law's innovative boot camp for aspiring Wall Street lawyers.
Cunningham has served on several public company boards, including currently Markel Group (New York Stock Exchange), a global insurance and investment company, as vice chairman of Constellation Software Inc. (Toronto Stock Exchange), owner and operator of nearly one-thousand vertical market software businesses, and Kelly Partners Group (Australian Stock Exchange), owner and operator of nearly one hundred independent accountancy firms.
Before becoming a professor, Cunningham practiced corporate law with Cravath, Swaine & Moore in New York from 1988 to 1994, where his practice areas included corporate governance, M&A, finance, and international. In 2018, Cunningham received the B. Kenneth West Lifetime Achievement Award from the National Association of Corporate Directors (NACD).
Industry Expertise (3)
Corporate Leadership
Investment Management
Business Services
Areas of Expertise (5)
Capital Allocation
Accounting
Business Advising
Capital Markets
Corporate Governance
Media Appearances (5)
Has the Long Friendship of Bill Gates and Warren Buffett Reached Its Final Act?
The New York Times online
2024-08-04
The New York Times quoted Lawrence Cunningham on Bill Gates and Warren Buffet’s philanthropy efforts.
Opinion | Buffett partner Charlie Munger kept these rules about investing and life that you can use too
MarketWatch online
2024-06-11
A tribute to the late ‘architect’ of Berkshire Hathaway highlights his guiding principles and philosophy.
Anti-Woke Brands Fuel Conservative Shopping Ecosystem Rise
Bloomberg Law online
2023-07-06
Lawrence Cunningham was quoted by Bloomberg Law in a conversation about politics and pursestrings.
FTX-Gisele Partnership Highlights Risks of Celebrity ESG Roles
Bloomberg Law online
2022-12-05
Lawrence A. Cunningham was quoted by Bloomberg Law regarding the value of companies announcing celebrity-attached ESG ambassadors.
Opinion | When it comes to corporate governance, one size does not fit all
The Globe and Mail online
2022-12-01
Lawrence A. Cunningham wrote for The Globe and Mail about how corporate governance must fit the specifics of each company rather than a universal standard.
Articles (5)
Congressional Testimony: Problems with the SEC's Climate Disclosure Proposal
GWU Legal Studies Research Paper2024 This Congressional testimony, requested by the House Financial Services Committee, identifies the fatal flaws embedded in the SEC's controversial climate disclosure rule, To summarize some primary problems, the Proposal:
Who Are Quality Shareholders and Why You Should Care
GWU Legal Studies Research Paper2023 Delaware may be the country's last best hope for maintaining balance and rationality in the country's system of corporate governance, as its policies advance the interests of quality shareholders, those with a deep and abiding interest in a particular corporation, rather than the agendas of assorted interest groups seeking to use the corporate form for parochial purposes. The text is based upon the 37th Annual Francis X. Pileggi Distinguished Lecture in Law which Professor Cunningham presented in February 2023 to the Delaware bench and bar and to the faculty and students of Delaware Law School.
The SEC's Misguided Climate Disclosure Rule Proposal
GWU Legal Studies Research Paper2022 The following article adapts and consolidates two comment letters submitted last spring by a group of twenty-two professors of finance and law on the SEC’s proposed climate change disclosure rules. The professors reiterate their recommendation that the SEC withdraw its proposal as legally misguided, while outlining some of the issues that the proposal will face when challenged in court.
Adapting to Remote Law Practice through the Pandemic: Essays from the GWNY 2020 Business Lawyering Class
GWU Legal Studies Research Paper2020 The coronavirus pandemic requires law schools to train students in the new art of remote legal services, to anticipate how this will change the practice of law and what it means to be" practice ready." The accompanying essays, by students caught in the middle of the epidemic during an immersive training program, offer reflections and visions. Written by students at the end of their spring 2020 semester in George Washington University's New York City (GWNY) business law program, the students explore how they must adapt their competencies accordingly.
Cultivating Quality: Ten Tools Managers Can Use to Get Long-Term Committed Shareholders
GWU Legal Studies Research Paper2020 Considerable effort goes into forging tools a corporation can use to shape its shareholder base. Much effort is geared toward promoting long investor time horizons, presumed to be a valuable but rare appetite among many shareholders. Less attention has been focused on promoting greater commitment, though attracting shareholders willing to stake large percentages of their portfolio in a given company’s stock may prove way more valuable than having numerous large index funds on the shareholder list.
Accomplishments (3)
37th Annual Pileggi Lecture, Widener University Delaware Law School (professional)
2023
National Association of Corporate Directors, Lifetime Achievement Award (professional)
2018
Girard College Alumni Association, Award of Merit (professional)
2017
Education (2)
Yeshiva University: JD, Business Law 1988
University of Delaware: BA, Economics 1985
Affiliations (1)
- Economic Club of New York : Member
Links (3)
Languages (1)
- English
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