Elizabeth Pollman
Perry Golkin Professor of Law
Elizabeth Pollman is the Perry Golkin Professor of Law at Penn Carey Law School, where she co-directs the Institute for Law & Economics. She has been named to the Corporate Practice Commentator's Top Ten list eight consecutive years. She has received both the Harvey Levin Memorial Award and the LLM Prize for Excellence in Teaching. Before joining Penn, she was a fellow at Stanford's Rock Center for Corporate Governance and taught at Loyola Law School. Her scholarship on ESG and corporate purpose has been widely influential in business law.
Teaching Style
Professor Pollman is an exceptionally clear and well-organized teacher who has won multiple teaching awards at Penn Carey Law, including the Harvey Levin Award and the LLM Prize for Teaching Excellence. She uses the Socratic method to walk students through corporate law problems with precision and care, cold-calling students to analyze real-world transactions and governance disputes. She is known for being accessible, encouraging, and effective at making complex transactional concepts understandable.
Cold Call Tips
- 1Know the fiduciary duties of directors and officers — duty of care, duty of loyalty, and the business judgment rule — as Pollman tests these extensively
- 2Be prepared to analyze real M&A transactions, including deal structure, board process, and shareholder approval requirements
- 3Understand the relationship between corporate governance and ESG — she is a leading scholar in this area
- 4Review Delaware corporate law principles thoroughly, especially Revlon, Unocal, and Blasius standards
Areas of Expertise
Education
- J.D., Harvard Law School
- B.A., Trinity University
Notable Publications
- The Making and Meaning of ESG (Harvard Business Law Review)
- Corporate Non-Speech and the Right to Remain Silent (Maryland Law Review)
Research Interests
More Professors at University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School
Administrative Law, Environmental Law, Regulatory Policy
Bankruptcy, Corporate Law, Financial Regulation
Antitrust Law, Intellectual Property, Law and Economics
Constitutional Law, Conflict of Laws, Civil Rights
Comparative Law, Legal Philosophy, International Law