S. Politics and the Corporation

Business organizations and elites are frequently perceived to be a powerful force in American politics. Drawing on both theoretical and empirical scholarship in law, political science, economics, and history, this seminar will examine how corporate actors shape, and are shaped by, law and politics in the United States. Topics may include the origins and evolution of the corporation, the purpose of the corporation, collective action, mobilization and policy feedback, corporate political strategies and influence, regulatory politics and capture, the personal ideology of directors and executives, the power of institutional investors, comparative perspectives, and the relationship between corporations, inequality, and democracy. We will start with historical foundations while paying particular attention to the contemporary period. The goal is to equip students with a robust understanding of how corporate power operates in American politics and how legal and institutional structures mediate that power, with implications for ongoing policy debates across various areas of law.