July 16, 2026

Index funds dominate the equity fund market and are the vehicle of choice for many Americans investing for retirement. But three investment companies together control about 25% of the equity in every exchange-traded company — and a commensurate number of shareholder votes. As Washington considers reforming the way index funds vote, Professor Robert E. Bishop retabulated 20 years of historical voting data under several proposed methods. He finds that “mirroring” the votes of non-indexed shares would provide the desired neutrality in voting while being least disruptive to corporate governance.

Stare decisis, or adherence to precedent established by prior rulings, has guided judicial decision-making in the U.S. from its roots in 18th century English law. But with the Supreme Court dominated by self-described textualists more willing to overturn precedent, Professor Margaret H. Lemos questions why some judges apply a textualist methodology to statutes — reading them for their plain, ordinary meaning — while parsing judicial opinions for purpose, context, and author intent. 

The meme stock crowd is back. Five years after orchestrating the GameStop short squeeze, this summer Reddit’s WallStreetBets community rallied behind fast-food chain Wendy’s, gobbling up its stock en masse and, at least briefly, reviving its sagging share price. But did they manipulate the market? In this Legal Brief video, Professor Gina-Gail Fletcher explains why, when it comes to coordinated retail investing, market manipulation is hard to prove. 

The United Nations Human Rights Committee is an 18-member body of experts that monitors compliance with the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, a human rights treaty ratified by nearly every country. As he closes out his four-year term, Professor Laurence Helfer reflects on how the Committee shines a light on the human rights records of governments and helps develop international law through its decisions and scholarship.

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