Upcoming Conference: 'The Code of Capital' by Professor Katharina Pistor (March 14, 2024)
he Lexum Chair and the Public Centre de recherche en droit public are pleased to invite you to the conference "The Code of Capital" by Prof. Katharina Pistor.
Practical Information
When : March 14, 2024, 4:30pm
Format : In Person
Where : Room A-3421
Maximilien-Caron Building
3101 de la Tour Road
H3T 1N8
Montréal, Québec
Speaker's Biography
Summary
Capital is the defining feature of modern economies, yet most people have no idea where it actually comes from. What is it, exactly, that transforms mere wealth into an asset that automatically creates more wealth? The Code of Capital explains how capital is created behind closed doors in the offices of private attorneys, and why this little-known fact is one of the biggest reasons for the widening wealth gap between the holders of capital and everybody else. The book suggests that the law selectively “codes” certain assets, endowing them with the capacity to protect and produce private wealth. With the right legal coding, any object, claim, or idea can be turned into capital—and lawyers are the keepers of the code. It describes how they pick and choose among different legal systems and legal devices for the ones that best serve their clients’ needs, and how techniques that were first perfected centuries ago to code landholdings as capital are being used today to code stocks, bonds, ideas, and even expectations—assets that exist only in law.
This content has been updated on 12 March 2024 at 17 h 32 min.