The Harvard Law School Forum on Corporate Governance recently featured research by Northwestern Master of Science in Law (MSL) student James Crowe. James’s article, entitled Misalignment Under the Radar: Stealth Dual-Class Stock, highlights examples of creative ways companies have recreated the entrenchment of dual-class stock. The Harvard Law School Forum on Corporate Governance is a top online resource for discourse on issues in corporate governance. You can read James’s piece here.
Like many MSL students, James has an interdisciplinary background. As an undergraduate, he studied economics, math, and sociology; he later earned a Doctor of Social Work (DSW), an advanced practice degree in social change and innovation. His professional experience includes positions at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, the White House Office of Management and Budget, and the Federal Reserve Board. James currently serves as Research Manager for the Council of Institutional Investors in Washington, D.C.
Continuing our blog series celebrating contributions to public discourse from MSL students and alumni, we are happy to highlight James’s piece here. To go along with this post, we asked James a few questions about his experience in the MSL program. Here is what he had to say.
MSL: You are an accomplished guy with many degrees and an interesting professional background – what brought you to the MSL?
James: The MSL program is a great way to get some formal legal training and a credential signaling that training. In my experience, many of the best jobs in Washington, D.C. don’t require that you be an attorney, but legal training can help you be much more effective in these roles.
For me, the law is to policymaking what coding is to an app company. If you’re leading a technology company, you have big picture goals like innovation and financial returns, but understanding coding helps you understand what’s possible, set strategic objectives, and communicate with technical leaders. Similarly, the MSL program can give you the background to use law in policy or business settings, set strategic objectives, and communicate more effectively with legal and business stakeholders. Your legal knowledge gives you a better chance of accomplishing the broader mission, but you don’t have to become a full-fledged lawyer.
MSL: What role did the MSL play in your writing of the governance piece? Are there any particular MSL skills or knowledge that spurred you on?
James: I came into the MSL program with research experience, although that research was not related to corporate governance. In the MSL program, I have expanded my substantive knowledge by taking classes like Securities Regulation, Federal Income Taxation, Business Associations, Corporate Criminal Law, and Business Strategy; these classes are either not generally available outside of a law school or are taught from a different orientation in other settings. These MSL classes opened my eyes to how lawyers and policymakers think about corporations and the corporate environment. With this background, I was able to produce my own work that hopefully contributes to the policy conversation surrounding corporate governance.
MSL: How does the MSL help you in your current position and position you for the future?
James: When I started in the MSL program, I was working at the Federal Reserve Board and have since moved to a trade association that represents long-term investors. Although I don’t write regulations anymore, I do write public comment letters for proposed regulations, and I also draft the language that becomes my trade association’s “policies”– best practices that are used in advocacy. The MSL program has helped me navigate the legal and business literature around the work of my trade association to support new policy positions as well as to draft more effective language.
Looking ahead, I think the MSL will help me advance to higher levels of responsibility in policy work – the unique opportunity to have advanced training in both law and other fields prepares me to produce high quality, interdisciplinary work. I think it is really helpful for leadership in trade associations, government, and other policy organizations to know how to effectively engage with legal counsel and have the background to propose novel policy approaches.
I also use the MSL training outside of my current role: as the President of my Homeowner’s Association, as a member of a local government advisory board (reviewing draft regulations), and in my personal capacity (resolving disputes, and commenting on proposed regulations).
MSL: Can you share thoughts about the value of a legal master’s degree for an accomplished mid-career professional like yourself?
James: The MSL is innovative – it disrupts the norm that says legal education is only for lawyers. The MSL allows folks to combine their previous training and experience with the study of law. Mid-career professionals who already have significant experience in their fields can uniquely unlock value from the MSL – this study can help someone differentiate themselves. The MSL can also provide some additional career flexibility; MSL training often allows someone transition into an area they might not have been qualified for before, as I did with my recent publication on corporate governance. The MSL can also be great for someone thinking about how to leverage their experience to launch a business.
For many mid-career professionals, there’s also a sense of personal satisfaction in the MSL. We have the flexibility to spread the degree out part-time over multiple years so we can be thoughtful with the coursework. And the training is useful even just to be a more effective participant in government processes as a citizen. For example, the U.S. Office of Personnel Management cited my public comment multiple times in the preamble to their final rule on pay equity. I commented on that rule in my personal capacity, just as an interested citizen who used to work for the government.
