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News Release

June 15, 2003

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Corporate Aftershock
The Public Policy Lessons from the Collapse of Enron and Other Major Corporations

The fall of Enron is a watershed moment in the era of corporate malfeasance. As the dust started to settle, the demand for stricter laws and more government oversight increased. The impetus was there for the government to "do something" to prevent another Enron-type disaster. The danger of this knee-jerk reaction is that without the proper analysis, new laws and regulations may do more harm than good, and, more importantly, have a far greater impact on the economy than the collapse of Enron itself.

Corporate Aftershock: The Public Policy Lessons from the Collapse of Enron and Other Major Corporations (Wiley; July 2003; $39.95; Cloth) edited by Christopher L. Culp and William A. Niskanen, addresses the public policy issues created by the Enron bankruptcy and other corporate disasters. Corporate Aftershock is a reasoned, informed response to the numerous proposals to restrict derivatives and other activities following the failure of Enron. Corporate Aftershock will provide the background on the markets, players, regulations, and institutional environment that will arm people to make such evaluations in an informed way.

Editors Christopher Culp and William Niskanen have assembled an expert cast of contributors, each of whom are leaders in their respective fields -- from credit risk management to energy and derivatives markets -- to provide an unbiased public policy analysis of the failure of Enron and other major corporations. Corporate Aftershock looks at five key topics:

  • Corporate innovation and governance
  • Energy and market derivatives
  • Structured finance
  • Credit risk mitigation
  • Regulating corporate innovation after Enron
With Corporate Aftershock as their guide, readers will learn what sensible solutions can be made in the aftermath of corporate disasters.

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