Lecture Series in Law and Economics - Governance in US Startups: Protecting VCs and Founders (from each other)
On 12 March 2025, the School of Law had the honour of hosting Professor Jesse Fried, for a talk titled “Governance in US Startups: Protecting VCs and Founders (from each other)”. The event featured an engaging Q&A session with CityUHK students and practitioners, moderated by Professor Lauren Yu-Hsin Lin. The Lecture Series in Law and Economics is a collaborative initiative between the City University of Hong Kong School of Law and the Asian Law and Economics Association. Featuring renowned scholars from around the world, the series explores the application of economic analysis to legal and policy issues, fostering dialogue and collaboration among legal and economics scholars, practitioners, and policymakers.
In his presentation, Professor Fried elucidated how the United States has established itself as a leader in the venture capital landscape. While many are aware of factors such as the scale of the US economy, its dynamic labor markets, a culture that embraces risk-taking, and a robust legal framework, he highlighted a set of governance mechanisms that are often overlooked. These mechanisms play a crucial role in shaping the contractual relationships between venture capitalists (VCs) and startup founders. His insights provided valuable perspectives for students and practitioners, encouraging them to consider the intricate dynamics of governance in startups and the essential role it plays in fostering innovation and growth.
There is a total of 190 participants attending the lecture in person and online.
About the speaker:
Jesse M. Fried is the William Nelson Cromwell Professor of Law at Harvard Law School. From 2014-2024, he was the Dane Professor of Law. Before joining the Harvard faculty in 2009, Fried was a Professor of Law and Faculty Co-Director of the Berkeley Center for Law, Business and the Economy (BCLBE) at the University of California Berkeley. Fried has also been a visiting professor at Columbia University Law School, Duisenberg School of Finance, Hebrew University, Tel Aviv University, and Reichman University. He holds an A.B. and A.M in Economics from Harvard University, and a J.D. magna cum laude from Harvard Law School.
His well-known book Pay without Performance: the Unfulfilled Promise of Executive Compensation, co-authored with Lucian Bebchuk, has been widely acclaimed by both academics and practitioners and translated into Arabic, Chinese, Japanese, and Italian. Fried has served as a consultant and expert witness in litigation involving executive compensation and corporate governance issues.
於2025年3月12日，法學院榮幸地邀請到Jesse Fried教授，為我們帶來名為《美國初創公司的管理：保護創業投資者和創辦者（相互之間）》的講座。此次活動還設有與城市大學香港的學生和專業人士的互動問答環節，由林郁馨教授主持。法律與經濟講座系列是香港城市大學法學院與亞洲法經濟學學會之間的合作計劃。該系列邀請來自世界各地的知名學者，探討經濟分析在法律和政策問題上的應用，促進法律和經濟學者、實務者及政策制定者之間的對話與合作。
在講座中，Fried教授闡明了美國如何在風險投資領域樹立了領導地位。雖然許多人都知道美國經濟規模、活躍的勞動市場、鼓勵風險承擔的文化以及健全的法律框架等因素，但他同時強調了一些經常被忽視的管理機制。這些機制在塑造創業投資者（VC）與初創公司創始人之間的合同關係中扮演著關鍵角色。他的見解為學生和專業人士提供了寶貴的視角，鼓勵他們思考初創公司的管理模式，以及這些管理機制在促進創新和增長中所扮演的基本角色。
這場講座共有190名參與者親自出席及在線參加。
關於講者：
Jesse M. Fried是哈佛法學院的William Nelson Cromwell法學教授。在2014至2024年間，他擔任Dane教授。Fried教授於2009年加入哈佛教職，之前曾是加州大學柏克萊分校法學教授及法學、商業與經濟中心（BCLBE）共同主任。他亦曾擔任哥倫比亞大學法學院、杜伊森堡金融學院、希伯來大學、特拉維夫大學及雷赫曼大學的訪問教授。他擁有哈佛大學的經濟學A.B.及A.M.學位，以及哈佛法學院的優異榮譽法學博士（J.D. magna cum laude）。
他與Lucian Bebchuk合著的著作《無績效薪酬：高管薪酬未實現的承諾》在學術界和業界廣受好評，並已翻譯成阿拉伯語、中文、日文和意大利文。Fried教授曾在涉及高管薪酬和公司治理問題的訴訟中擔任顧問及專家證人。