Student Scholarships & Fellowships

The John M. Olin Program in Law and Economics awards several scholarships and fellowships to promote student research in law and economics and to develop a cohort of students with shared interests in actively engaging the economic analysis of law. The scholarships are awarded to candidates with a strong economics background, superior academic credentials and a demonstrated ability and interest in the study of law and economics. Olin scholars are expected to maintain a high academic record, to participate in all activities of the Olin Program and to help publicize the program to their law school peers.

A notice will be posted outside the Student Records office in early February announcing the Olin Scholarships and deadline dates. Interested first- and second-year students should submit a resume, one letter of recommendation, a transcript and a brief statement justifying their eligibility and their interest in this scholarship to Joyce Holt, the program administrator.

The Summer Research Fellowship funds student research in the economic analysis of law. The fellowship is awarded through a competitive process that weighs the academic record and experience of applicants and the merits of the proposed research. The student chosen as the summer research fellow is required to spend the summer at the law school conducting his or her own research in an area of law and economics under the supervision of a faculty member. The fellow is expected to complete a scholarly paper by the beginning of the fall semester and present it at an Olin Student Lunch Discussion during the fall.

The John M. Olin Writing Prize in Law and Economics is awarded each year to recognize an outstanding student paper that uses law and economics methodology. The award carries an honorarium. Papers can be journal notes, independent research projects, course monographs or the like. The selection is made by the Olin Steering Committee.

2008-2009 Scholars

J.D. Scholars: Daniel Kaplan, William Vigen, Joshua Bradley, Mark Hiller, Alan Griffith, Elena Sauber, Chris Brown, Andrew Winerman, Clarke Edwards

Graduate Economics Scholars: Bo Sun, Jonathan Williams, Shuna Wang, Xuan Tam, Sean Sullivan

2008 Summer Research Fellows

Paul Belonick
Trojan Efficiencies: Society, Commerce, and Commercial Law in Early-Modern Scotland

Jonathan Wolfson
The Effect of the Payroll Tax on Married Women’s Labor Force Participation

2008 John M. Olin Writing Prize

Timothy Kennedy
Shifting Responsibility for Providing Retiree Health Benefits from Employers to Voluntary Employee Beneficiary Associations

2007-2008 Olin Scholars

J.D. Scholars: Lisa Lorish, Andrea Surratt, Katherine Twomey, Daniel Kaplan, Colin LeCroy, Matthew Nicholson, James Stern and William Vigen

Graduate Economics Scholars: Juan Carlos Bisso, Bo Sun, Angela Smith, Jonathan Williams and Olek Zhylyegvskyy

2007 Summer Research Fellow

Michael Allen Griffith
Equity, Efficiency or Both? A Game Theory Approach to Tax Compliance and Enforcement

2007 John M. Olin Writing Prize

Thomas Chen
Authorized Generics: A Prescription for Hatch-Waxman Reform

2006-2007 Olin Scholars

J.D. Scholars: Paul Laurence, Jessica King, Joseph Ponzi, Mark DeFigueiredo, Andrea Surratt and Katherine Twomey

Graduate Economics Scholars: Juan Carlos Bisso, Adam Hyde, Jonathan Williams and Jing Yin

2006 John M. Olin Writing Prize

Eric A. Reitman
A Critical Evaluation of the Board Orthodoxy in Corporate Governance Scholarship and Proposal of a Board-less Alternative for the Diffusely-Owned Public Corporation

2005-2006 Olin Scholars

J.D. Scholars: Pauletta Brown, Tanya Warchek, Paul Laurence,  Leslie Kendrick, Christopher Termini, Asieh Nariman, Jessica King, Andrea L. Surratt,  Andrew Wogman.

Graduate Economics Scholars: Juan Carlos Bisso, Jing Yin, Adam Hyde and Jonathan Williams

2005 John M. Olin Writing Prize

Jennifer DeLeonardo
Are Public and Private Political Risk Insurance Two of a Kind?

Christopher J.S. Termini
Return on Political Investment and the Puzzle of Lobbying for the Default Rules of Articles 3 and 4 of the U.C.C.

2004–2005 Olin Scholars

Brooks Cowen, Steve Kaplan, David Greene, Evan Stephenson, Pauleta Brown, Tanya Warchek, Jason Brege, Paul Laurence, Maria Fitzpatrick, Juan Carlos Bisso, Jing Yin, Xavier Kowalski and Sam Vermont.

2004 Summer Research Fellow

Xavier Kowalski
The Effect of Patents on Growth and Innovation in the Software Industry in the United States and Europe 

2004 John M. Olin Writing Prize

Michael Passaportis
A Law and Norms Critique of the Constitutional Law of Defamation

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