The Law and Finance of Private Equity and Venture Capital | 2026
By invitation only
Bocconi University, the DFG LawFin Center at Goethe University in Frankfurt, the LSE Law School, the Faculty of Law of the University of Oxford, and the Institute for Law & Economics at the University of Pennsylvania, together with ECGI, are pleased to announce the convening of the 5th edition of the conference on “The Law and Finance of Private Equity and Venture Capital” on 25-26 June 2026, at Goethe University in Frankfurt.
Attendance will be by invitation only.
📆 Conference details:
Thursday, 25 June - Friday, 26 June 2026
📍 Conference Location:
Goethe University Frankfurt, Germany
Organisers
Bocconi University
The DFG LawFin Center at the Goethe University in Frankfurt
LSE Law School, The London School of Economics
The Faculty of Law of the University of Oxford
Institute for Law & Economics, University of Pennsylvania
European Corporate Governance Institute (ECGI)
Programme
Thursday, 25 June 2026 | 08:45 BST
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Coffee
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Welcome and Introduction
Speaker(s)
LawFin Center, Goethe University
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Session 1 – Private Markets: A Cross-sectoral View
Moderator
University of Pennsylvania Law School
Generational Conflict in Business and Society
Speaker(s)
Yale Law School
Discussant
University of Hamburg
Are Alternative Investments Essential for Well-Functioning Capital Markets?
Speaker(s)
University of Oxford & ESCP Business School
Discussant
LSE Law School
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Break
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Session 2 – VC-backed Startups between Private Ordering and AI
Moderator
Bocconi University
The Optional Firm
Speaker(s)
University of Haifa
Discussant
Goethe University/House of Finance, Frankfurt, Germany
Stockholder Agreements, Dexit and Contractarianism – Could There Have Been a Better Delaware Response to Moelis?
Speaker(s)
University of Cambridge
Discussant
Tel Aviv University
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Lunch
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Session 3 – Private Capital Intermediation: Value Creation and Access
Moderator
LSE Law School
Irreplaceable Venture Capitalists
Speaker(s)
Arizona State University
Discussant
Amsterdam Law School and Business School, University of Amsterdam
Private Equity for All: The Paradoxical Push to Democratize Private Markets
Speaker(s)
BYU Law School
Discussant
Debevoise & Plimpton Frankfurt
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Break
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Session 4 – Private Fund Governance and Startup Exits
Moderator
University of Oxford & ESCP Business School
Limited Partner Advisory Committees and the Governance of Private Capital
Speaker(s)
Duke University School of Law
Discussant
Tilburg University Faculty of Law and Tilburg Law and Economics Center
LSE Law School
Exit after Exit
Speaker(s)
University of Pennsylvania Law School
Discussant
Warwick Business School
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Dinner (by invitation only) – generously sponsored by Debevoise & Plimpton LLP Frankfurt
Friday, 26 June 2026 | 09:00 BST
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Coffee
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Welcome Back and Introduction
Speaker(s)
University of Leeds School of Law
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Session 5 – VC Funds and Ecosystem Formation
Moderator
LSE Law School
The Lifecycle of Venture Capital Funds
Speaker(s)
Warwick Business School
Discussant
Goethe University Frankfurt and CFS/ SAFE Frankfurt
The Emergence of Silicon Valleys: A Role for Government
Speaker(s)
UC Berkeley
Discussant
Stanford Law School
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Break
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Session 6 – PE Governance and Operational Techniques
Moderator
Bocconi University, Department of Legal Studies
Liability Management’s Limited Runway: Corporate Restructuring Today
Speaker(s)
Harvard Law School
Discussant
University of Luxembourg
Unpacking the Buyout Board Leadership: The Antecedents and Consequences of Outside Chairperson
Speaker(s)
University of Sussex Business School
Discussant
Aras Canipek
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Lunch
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Session 7 – PE Markets: Transparency and Retailization
Moderator
University of Oxford
Private Equity’s Accountability Deficit: The Case for Mandatory Disclosure
Speaker(s)
Columbia Law School
Discussant
Orrick Düsseldorf
Rutgers Law School
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Break
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Session 8 – The Changing Private Capital Landscape: From Financing to Litigation — Global Insights
Moderator
University of Pennsylvania Law School
Panelist(s)
Orrick Düsseldorf
Georgia State University
YPOG Cologne
Emily Strauss
Burford Capital
Q&A
Moderator
University of Oxford & ESCP Business School
Closing Remarks
Speaker(s)
Leibniz Institute SAFE, Goethe University Frankfurt, LawFin Center
Speakers
Jill Fisch
Saul A. Fox Distinguished Professor of Business Law
University of Pennsylvania Law School
Fellow, Research Member
Jeffrey Gordon
Richard Paul Richman Professor of Law and Co-Director, Millstein Center for Global Markets and Corporate Ownership
Columbia Law School
Fellow, Research Member
Geneviève Helleringer
Professor of Law
University of Oxford & ESCP Business School
Board Member, Research Member
Michael Klausner
Nancy and Charles Munger Professor of Business and Professor of Law
Stanford Law School
Fellow, Research Member
Joseph McCahery
Professor of International Economic Law and Professor of Financial Market Regulation
Tilburg University Faculty of Law and Tilburg Law and Economics Center
Research Member
Alessio Pacces
Professor of Law and Finance
Amsterdam Law School and Business School, University of Amsterdam
Research Member
Elizabeth Pollman
Perry Golkin Professor of Law
University of Pennsylvania Law School
Research Member
Denis Sosyura
James & Elizabeth Robertson Professor of Finance
Arizona State University
Research Member
Tobias Tröger
Professor of Private Law, Commercial and Business Law
Leibniz Institute SAFE, Goethe University Frankfurt, LawFin Center
Research Member
Uwe Walz
Full Professor of Economics
Goethe University Frankfurt and CFS/ SAFE Frankfurt
Research Member
Dirk Zetzsche
Professor of Law, ADA Chair in Financial Law (inclusive finance)
University of Luxembourg
Academic Member
Presentations
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Private Equity for All: The Paradoxical Push to Democratize Private Markets
Speaker(s)
Discussant(s)
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Private Equity for All: The Paradoxical Push to Democratize Private Markets
Speaker(s)
Discussant(s)
In collaboration with ECGI Institutional members
Organised by
Saul A. Fox Distinguished Professor of Business Law
University of Pennsylvania Law School
Suren Gomtsyan
Assistant Professor
LSE Law School
Professor of Private Law, Commercial and Business Law
Leibniz Institute SAFE, Goethe University Frankfurt, LawFin Center
Contact
Contact
