Corporations uniquely have a tax preference for cash dividends. Nevertheless, dividends do not increase following trades of large-percentage blocks of stock from individuals to corporations. Moreover, although one-third of firms have corporate blockholders, 68% of these firms pay no dividends,...

ABSTRACTChapter I Does Corporate Governance Make a Difference in Hard Times?Using data from proxy statements, I investigate the impact of various firm characteristics and corporate governance measures on firm performance during a period of an exogenous economic shock. The first sample...