Two lectures presented by the Widener University School of Law took place last week. Professor Michelle M. Harner of the University of Maryland School of Law delivered the 2009 visiting scholar lecture at the Hotel du Pont on Nov. 17, and Princeton University professor Paul Starr delivered the fifth annual Raynes McCarty Distinguished Lecture in Health Law on Widener’s Delaware campus and at the Union League of Philadelphia, both on Nov. 19.
Harner teaches in the areas of bankruptcy and creditors’ rights, among other subjects. Her lecture, “Activist Distressed Debtholders: The New Barbarians at the Gate?” explored recent examples of debtholder activism such as Carl Icahn’s purchase of the Tropicana Resort, and the U.S. government’s role in Rick Wagoner’s resignation as CEO of General Motors Corp. The lecture examined whether this type of activism enhances or impairs corporate value.
