Biography
Randall Thomas has earned a reputation of being one of the most productive and thoughtful corporate and securities law scholars in the nation. His recent work addresses issues such as hedge fund shareholder activism, executive compensation, corporate voting, corporate litigation, shareholder voting, and mergers and acquisitions. Twelve of his papers have been selected by his peers as among the Ten Best Corporate and Securities articles in the year they were published by Corporate Practice Commentator.
Professor Thomas joined the Vanderbilt law faculty in 2000 to develop and direct the Law and Business Program, having served previously for 10 years on the law faculty of the University of Iowa. He has been a visiting professor at the University of Michigan, Duke University, Harvard Law School, Boston University and the University of Washington. Prior to teaching law, Thomas was in private practice for four years and was a law clerk for U.S. District Judge Charles Joiner of the Eastern District of Michigan. An acclaimed teacher, Professor Thomas teaches courses in the area of corporate law, including Corporations and Mergers and Acquisitions.
Programs
Education
Ph.D. (Economics), J.D. University of Michigan
B.A. Haverford College
Related Resources
Publications
Quieting the Shareholders’ Voice: Empirical Evidence of Pervasive Bundling in Proxy Solicitations
"Quieting the Shareholders’ Voice: Empirical Evidence of Pervasive Bundling in Proxy Solicitations," 89 Southern California Law Review 1179 (2016) (with James Cox, Fabrizio Ferri and Colleen Honigsberg), reprinted in, 59 Corporate Practice Commentator 199 (2017). Selected as one of The Ten Best Corporate and Securities Law Articles of 2017, by Corporate Practice Commentator.
FULL TEXT: SSRN | HEINDelaware’s Retreat: Exploring Developing Fissures and Tectonic Shifts in Delaware Corporate Law
"Delaware’s Retreat: Exploring Developing Fissures and Tectonic Shifts in Delaware Corporate Law," 42 Delaware Journal of Corporate Law 323-389 (2018) (with James D. Cox) Selected as one of the Best Corporate and Securities Articles of 2018, by Corporate Practice Commentator.
FULL TEXT: SSRNShareholder Voting in an Age of Intermediary Capitalism
Dodd-Frank
A Theory of Representative Shareholder Suits and its Application to Multi-Jurisdictional Litigation
Does Private Equity Create Wealth? (with Ronald Masulis)
Hedge Fund Activism, Corporate Governance and Firm Performance (with Alon Brav, Wei Jiang and Frank Partnoy)
Letting Billions Slip Through Your Fingers
"Letting Billions Slip Through Your Fingers: Empirical Evidence and Legal Implications of the Failure of Financial Institutions to Participate in Securities Fraud Class Action Settlements," 58 Stanford Law Review 411 (2005) (with James Cox). Selected as one of the Best Corporate and Securities Articles of 2006, by Corporate Practice Commentator.
FULL TEXT: SSRN | HEINThe New Look of Shareholder Litigation
"The New Look of Shareholder Litigation: Acquisition-Oriented Class Actions," 57 Vanderbilt Law Review 133 (2004) (with Robert Thompson). Selected as one of the Best Corporate and Securities Articles of 2004, by Corporate Practice Commentator. Reprinted in Mergers and the Market for Corporate Control (Fred McChesney editor 2012). Excerpted in Foundations of Corporate Law (Roberta Romano editor, 2d ed. 2010).
FULL TEXT: SSRN | HEINRealigning Corporate Governance
"Realigning Corporate Governance: Shareholder Activism By Labor Unions," 96 Michigan Law Review 1018 (1998) (with Stewart Schwab), reprinted in 40 Corporate Practice Commentator (1998), Employee Representation in the Emerging Workplace: Alternatives/Supplements to Collective Bargaining (1998), and in The International Library of Essays in Law and Legal Theory, 2nd Series (2000). Selected as one of the Best Corporate and Securities Articles of 1998, by Corporate Practice Commentator.
FULL TEXT: SSRN | HEIN