Bite-Sized Business Law

As climate change increasingly reshapes the way we live and do business, companies are facing a new reality: adapting to environmental risk is no longer optional. But alongside the challenges are significant opportunities. In this episode, Adam Orford, associate professor of environmental law and policy at Fordham Law School, explores the growing intersection of business law and climate change, and what it means for the future of business. We examine whether businesses may have more power than governments to drive meaningful environmental change and the growing international demand for clean energy. Adam also considers the potential role of nuclear energy in addressing climate change, and why climate concerns extend far beyond traditional environmental policy. From the environmental costs of war to the rapid expansion of AI and data centers, Adam explores the unexpected ways business, technology, and geopolitics intersect with the climate crisis. Ultimately, we consider how climate change concerns all of us, and why collective action remains one of the biggest obstacles to meaningful solutions. Tune in for this fascinating discussion.
Key Points From This Episode:
The moment in environmental law and business that we are currently living through.
How Adam Orford honed his expertise in environmental law and policy.
Who he represented while practicing corporate law: energy developers, non-profits, and governments.
Do businesses have more power to protect the environment than the government? 
The growing international demand for clean energy.
Considering the actual impact of environmentally friendly business practices. 
How nuclear energy development is beneficial to climate change.
Why war is linked with climate change — the short- and long-term environmental cost.
What we really have to be concerned about with AI.
How data centres affect the environment.
Considering the most optimal response to the threat posed by data centers.
The democratic discourse that has emerged in response to the AI conversation.
Why climate change concerns every state and nation.
How collective action challenges prevent climate change solutions.
Links Mentioned in Today’s Episode:
Adam Orford
Adam Orford Fordham Law
Adam Orford LinkedIn
Article on COP29 UN Convention
Fordham University School of Law Corporate Law Center

When every mass-tort claimant has the same voting power, can bankruptcy still deliver a fair settlement? In this episode of Bite-Sized Business Law, we welcome Wake Forest Law Professor Samir Parikh and Fordham Law Professor Richard Squire to examine how claimant farming can distort mass tort bankruptcies. Samir is a nationally recognized expert in mass tort restructurings and editor-in-chief of the Bloomberg Law Bankruptcy Treatise, and Richard is an expert in bankruptcy and corporate restructuring. Together, they explain why the vote is meant to restore agency to victims and how the current system can undermine that promise. They discuss traditional voting rules and the nominal one-dollar valuation approach used when courts face tens of thousands of uncertain claims. Samir and Richard unpack how low-value or nonmeritorious claims, weak powers of attorney, and third-party litigation finance can combine to outweigh stronger claims. They also explore why bankruptcy remains attractive for mass tort resolution, where its safeguards are breaking down, and what courts and lawmakers can do before the next wave of claims arrives. Tune in to discover who benefits from the current system, who risks being left behind, and how mass tort bankruptcy voting can better protect the claimants who have suffered the most.
Key Points From This Episode:
Discover why voting is vital to claimant agency in mass tort settlements.
Learn how Chapter 11 voting balances the number and value of claims.
Explore why courts give mass tort claims a nominal one-dollar value.
Uncover how courts determine whether claims are meritorious.
Examine why claimants owed no recovery should be treated as rejecting a plan.
Consider when attorneys have the authority to vote for their clients.
Understand how third-party litigation finance can increase the number of weak claims.
Hear about Samir’s proposed solutions for filtering claims and improving voting.
See how claimants could challenge a decision under his proposed AI review process.
Find out how bellwether trials could help courts value representative claims.
Compare bankruptcy with multidistrict litigation and individual trials for resolving mass torts.
Whether proposed legislation addresses the problems in mass tort bankruptcies.
Links Mentioned in Today’s Episode:
Samir Parikh
Samir Parikh on LinkedIn
Richard Squire
Richard Squire on LinkedIn
'Mass-Tort Voting Takes Center Stage'
Brook Gotberg on The Price of “Global Peace” in Purdue Pharma
Brook Gotberg and Richard Squire on Purdue Pharma II
Fordham University School of Law Corporate Law Center

Welcome to the 100th episode of the Bite-Sized Business Law podcast! In celebration of this milestone, the president of Fordham University, Tania Tetlow, joins us to discuss the business of running a university. Tuning in, you’ll hear all about President Tetlow’s life, her professional background, how running a university is similar to running a business, her mission-driven role, and more! She goes on to discuss the importance of pulling leadership from within faculty ranks before talking about how educational institutions can stay agile in an unpredictable world while maintaining their core principles. We even touch on the Pope’s insightful letter about artificial intelligence. Finally, President Tetlow shares the biggest challenge she has faced in her role so far and leaves law students interested in business with some important advice about the potential impact they can make in the world. 
Key Points From This Episode:
Welcoming President Tania Tetlow to the show and an overview of her journey.
How her career and upbringing prepared her to run a university. 
The similarities between running a business and running a university. 
Mission-driven educational leadership versus business management. 
How she trains faculty to run the university smoothly.
What higher education needs to do to stay agile in the face of political pressure, social media, and a shifting workplace due to AI. 
President Tetlow’s thoughts on the Pope’s letter about artificial intelligence. 
The biggest challenge President Tetlow has faced at Fordham University.
Advice for business law students about their ability to make an impact.
Links Mentioned in Today’s Episode:
Tania Tetlow
Office of the President
Tania Tetlow on LinkedIn
Pope Leo's Encyclical on AI
Fordham University School of Law Corporate Law Center

South Dakota has turned itself into the ‘trust fund capital’ of America, and the system is thriving financially. Some proponents say the South Dakota trust fund regime is absolutely necessary for those with mega-wealth, but others argue that it’s eroding the American tax base, enabling the hollowing out of the middle class, and defying the trust Teddy Roosevelt knew Americans had in each other. Author and investigative journalist Leah McGrath Goodman unpacks her report, ‘Inside America’s Race to Hide the World’s Money.’ Tuning in, you’ll hear all about Leah’s life and career, where the estate tax originated in the US, what a trust is, why South Dakota started trying to attract wealthy individuals to direct their money there, and more. We delve into how people who don’t actually live in the state can take advantage of its tax system before discussing the benefits of South Dakota’s privacy laws. Leah goes on to touch on the biggest concerns she uncovered when reporting about the South Dakota trust machine, and she shares some potential solutions to these issues. Finally, our guest tells us what other states are trying to ‘copy’ South Dakota’s structure. Tune in now for this fascinating discussion! 
Key Points From This Episode:
Introducing Leah McGrath Goodman and an overview of her background. 
The history of the estate tax in the US and what a trust actually is. 
What motivated South Dakota to attract wealthy people to direct their money there. 
How people who don’t live in South Dakota can take advantage of this system. 
A breakdown of some of South Dakota’s privacy laws and how they’re beneficial. 
What South Dakota, as a state, gains from utilizing a system like this. 
The main concerns that arose in Leah’s reporting about the SD trust system.
A few of the benefits of the South Dakota trust empire on the economy as a whole.
Leah breaks down some potential solutions to some of these issues.  
Who originally came up with this structure and which states are trying to emulate it too.
Links Mentioned in Today’s Episode:
Leah McGrath Goodman
Leah McGrath Goodman on LinkedIn
'Inside America’s Race to Hide the World’s Money'
Fordham University School of Law Corporate Law Center

How do you put a price on companies that could reshape entire industries? Today on Bite-Sized Business Law, we welcome ‘the Dean of Valuation,’ Professor Aswath Damodaran, to explain the methods behind the valuations of large companies. Tuning in, you’ll hear all about how price and value differ, the importance of taking ownership of your decisions as an investor, how Professor Damodaran has valued SpaceX and why it has been valued so high. We delve into the wild valuations of AI and the effects of the technology on society, before discussing how to invest in an industry that might have no good outcome. Professor Damodaran even touches on the future of AI in law and shares his thoughts on how AI can be compared to the dot-com bubble. Finally, our guest shares his hopes and concerns for the future of technology and challenges listeners to rediscover their capacity to think outside the box. You don’t want to miss this one, so be sure to press play now! 
Key Points From This Episode:
Welcoming Professor Aswath Damodaran to the show. 
The difference between value and price, and his valuation of SpaceX. 
An explanation of how and why SpaceX has been valued so high. 
The potential problems SpaceX may face and the advantages it has. 
Why AI has as much value as it does, and the cost of use and production. 
Some detrimental effects AI may have, and how to invest considering that. 
The future role of AI in law and lawmaking, in our guest’s opinion. 
Professor Damodaran shares his thoughts on comparing AI to the dot-com bubble. 
Why he’s hopeful about the future, and what technological factors concern him.  
How Professor Damodaran’s teaching has had to change because of these issues. 
Links Mentioned in Today’s Episode:
Aswath Damodaran 
Aswath Damodaran at NYU
Aswath Damodaran on LinkedIn
Aswath Damodaran on YouTube
The Aswath Damodaran Bot
Another Aswath Damodaran Bot
Professor Damodaran's Blog Post on his AI Bot: Beat Your Bot
Professor Damodaran's Blog Post on his AI Bot: The Imitation Game
Professor Damodaran's Blog Post on his AI Bot: AI Scenarios  
Fordham University School of Law Corporate Law Center