This study re-examines the theory of legal origin on the basis of a new longitudinal dataset on creditor protection for four OECD countries over a long time span 1970-2005. It observes that civil law countries (France and Germany) provided a higher level of protection to creditors on the issue...

We examine how country-level legal and institutional differences in creditor and shareholder rights shape the use of bond covenants. Using comprehensive debt covenant information for a sample of Yankee bonds issued by firms from more than 50 countries, we find that bond contracts for firms...

Using a sample of non-U.S. firms from 22 countries during 2003–2007, we examine the effect of firm-level governance on various features of loan contracting in the international loan market. We find that banks charge lower loan rates, offer larger and longer-maturity loans, and impose fewer...

We study how banks adjust their portfolios in response to a deterioration in creditor rights. We construct a comprehensive creditor rights index based on a series of quasi-natural experiments in Italy and exploit a unique proprietary credit-level database of one of the largest Italian banks. Our...

In an attempt to match US bankruptcy law, many European countries have reformed their insolvency laws towards a regime that fosters corporate restructuring. This paper evaluates the implications of these reforms. Based on a staggered difference-in-differences analysis around eight insolvency...

We examine startup entry and exit activity following the staggered adoption of modern-day fraudulent transfer laws in the United States. These laws strengthen unsecured creditors' rights and are particularly important for entrepreneurs whose personal assets commingle with the firm's. Using...

We examine entrepreneurial activity following the staggered adoption of modern-day fraudulent transfer laws in the United States. These laws strengthen unsecured creditors' rights and are particularly important for entrepreneurs whose personal assets commingle with the firm's. Using...

We exploit a quasi-natural experiment (the adoption of state anti-recharacterization (AR) laws) to study the effect of strengthened creditor rights on corporate mergers and acquisitions (M&A). We find that, following the passage of AR laws, firms significantly reduce M&A activities. This effect...

We examine the relation between creditor rights and stock price crash risk by exploiting the staggered enactment of anti-recharacterization laws that gives lenders greater access to the collateral and thus strengthens creditor rights. We find robust evidence that stock price crash risk subsides...