Cary Coglianese
Edward B. Shils Professor of Law and Professor of Political Science
Cary Coglianese is the Edward B. Shils Professor of Law and Professor of Political Science at Penn Carey Law School, where he directs the Penn Program on Regulation. He is a Fellow of the National Academy of Public Administration and one of the nation's leading scholars on regulatory governance. Before Penn, he spent twelve years at the Harvard Kennedy School of Government. His current research focuses on how artificial intelligence and algorithmic tools are transforming administrative decision-making and regulatory enforcement.
Teaching Style
Professor Coglianese is a methodical and evidence-based teacher who brings empirical rigor to the study of administrative law and regulation. He uses the Socratic method to push students to evaluate regulatory approaches based on their actual effectiveness, not just their doctrinal elegance. He cold-calls students regularly and expects them to engage with both the legal frameworks and the policy analysis underlying regulatory decisions. His approach is interdisciplinary, drawing on political science and public policy alongside law.
Cold Call Tips
- 1Understand the rulemaking process under the APA in detail — notice-and-comment, informal vs. formal procedures, and judicial review standards
- 2Be prepared to evaluate regulatory approaches empirically — Coglianese cares about whether regulations actually work
- 3Read about how AI and machine learning are being used in regulatory contexts — this is a growing focus of his work
- 4Think about the role of public participation, cost-benefit analysis, and presidential oversight in shaping regulatory outcomes
Areas of Expertise
Education
- J.D., University of Michigan Law School
- M.P.P., University of Michigan
- B.A., Allegheny College
Notable Publications
- Regulating by Robot: Administrative Decision Making in the Machine-Learning Era (George Washington Law Review)
- Empirical Analysis of Environmental Law (co-editor)
Research Interests
More Professors at University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School
Bankruptcy, Corporate Law, Financial Regulation
Antitrust Law, Intellectual Property, Law and Economics
Corporations, Mergers and Acquisitions, Corporate Governance, Startups and Venture Capital
Constitutional Law, Conflict of Laws, Civil Rights
Comparative Law, Legal Philosophy, International Law