Faculty Directory

Professor of Finance and Business Economics

Washington Mutual Endowed Chair in Innovation

Education

PhD University of California, Los Angeles (1982)

MA University of California, Los Angeles (1980)

BA University of Alaska (1978)

Academic Expertise

Current Research

Corporate governance, Corporate crime and punishment, Corporate finance

Positions Held

At the University of Washington since 1983

John M. Olin Visiting Professor at the University of Chicago, 1998

Visiting Alumni Professor of Finance at Emory University, 2000-2002

Selected Publications

1. “The Lifecycle Effects of Firm Takeover Defenses“

   Journal Article:Johnson, W. C., Karpoff, J., & Yi, S., (2022). Review of Financial Studies, Vol. 36(5), pp. 2879-2927.
2. “SEC should mandate ESG disclosure limited to matters that directly affect the firm’s cash flows“

   Journal Article:Karpoff, J., Litan, R., Schrand, C., & Weil, R., (2022). Financial Analysts Journal, Vol. 78(2), pp. 9-18.
3. “The Tragedy of ‘The Tragedy of the Commons’ – Hardin vs. the Property Rights Theorists“

   Journal Article:Karpoff, J., (2022). Journal of Law and Economics, Vol. 65(S1), pp. 65-84.
4. “Shareholder Perks, Ownership Structure, and Firm Value“

   Journal Article:Kaproff, J., Schonlau, R. J., & Suzuki, K., (2021). Review of Financial Studies, Vol. 34(2), pp. 5676-5722.
5. “The Trust Triangle: Laws, Reputation, and Culture in Empirical Finance Research“

   Journal Article:Karpoff, J., Dupont, Q., (2020). Journal of Business Ethics, Vol. 163(2), pp. 217-238.
6. “Financial Reporting Fraud and Other Forms of Misconduct: A Multidisciplinary Review of the Literature“

   Journal Article:Karpoff, J., Amiran, D., Bozanic, Z., Cox, J., Dupont, Q., Sloan, R., (2018). Review of Accounting Studies, Vol. 23(2), pp. 732-783.
7. “Institutional and Legal Context in Nagtural Experiments: The Case of State Antitakeover Laws“

   Journal Article:Karpoff, J. M., & Wittry, M., (2018). The Journal of Finance, Vol. 73(2), pp. 657-714.
8. “Do Takeover Defense Indices Measure Takeover Deterrence?“

   Journal Article:Karpoff, J. M., Schonlau, R., & Wehrly, E., (2017). The Review of Financial Studies, Vol. 30(7), pp. 2359-2412.
9. “Proxies and Databases in Financial Misconduct Research“

   Journal Article:Karpoff, J., Koester, A., Lee, D. S., & Martin, G. S., (2017). The Accounting Review, Vol. 92(6), pp. 129-163.
10. “Thirty Years of Shareholder Activism: A Survey of Empirical Research“

    Journal Article:Denes, R., Karpoff, J. M., & McWilliams, V. B., (2017). Journal of Corporate Finance, Vol. 44, pp. 405-424.
11. “Short Selling and Earnings Management: A Controlled Experiment“

    Journal Article:Fang, V., Huang, A., & Karpoff, J. M., (2016). Journal of Finance, Vol. 71(3), pp. 1251-1294.
12. “The Bonding Hypothesis of Takeover Defenses“

    Journal Article:Johnson, W., Karpoff, J. M., & Yi, S., (2015). Journal of Financial Economics, Vol. 117(2), pp. 307-332.
13. “Evidence of Optimal Contracting: Lockup Agreements in Seasoned Equity Offerings“

    Journal Article:Karpoff, J. M., Lee, G., & Masulis, R., (2013). Journal of Financial Economics, Vol. 110(3), pp. 607-626.
14. “Internal Corporate Governance, CEO Turnover, and Earnings Management“

    Journal Article:Hazarika, S., Karpoff, J. M., & Nahata, R., (2012). Journal of Financial Economics, Vol. 104(1), pp. 44-69.
15. “Short Sellers and Financial Misconduct“

    Journal Article:Karpoff, J. M., & Lou, X., (2010). Journal of Finance, Vol. 65(5), pp. 1879-1913.
16. “The Consequences to Managers for Financial Misrepresentation“

    Journal Article:Karpoff, J. M., Lee, S. D., & Martin, G. S., (2008). Journal of Financial Economics, Vol. 88(2), pp. 193-215.
17. “The Cost to Firms of Cooking the Books“

    Journal Article:Karpoff, J. M., Lee, S. D., & Martin, G. S., (2008). Journal of Financial and Quantitative Analysis, Vol. 43(3), pp. 581-612.
18. “The Determinants of Corporate Board Size and Composition: Empirical Evidence“

    Journal Article:Boone, A. L., Field, L. C., Karpoff, J. M., & Raheja, C. G., (2007). Journal of Financial Economics, Vol. 85(1), pp. 66-101.
19. “Corporate Governance and Shareholder Initiatives: Empirical Evidence“

    Journal Article:Karpoff, J. M., Malatesta, P., & Walkling, R., (1996). Journal of Financial Economics, Vol. 98(2), pp. 256-278.

Consulting

Corporate governance, Securities fraud, Natural resource valuation issues

Honors and Awards

Best Teacher Award, UW Executive MBA graduating class, June 2015

Award for Outstanding Contribution to Research in Corporate Governance, Center for Corporate Governance, Drexel University, April 2015

Best Teacher Award, UW Executive MBA graduating class, June 2014

Best Teacher Award, UW Global Executive MBA graduating class, June 2013

Best Paper Award in Corporate Finance for “Why do IPO firms have takeover defenses?” at the 2012 Financial Management Association conference, October 2012

Emerald Management Review’s Citations of Excellence Award (for a top-50 cited paper in business journals, 2008-2012) for “The Cost to Firms of Cooking the Books,” September 2012

Best Paper Award for “Why Do IPO Firms Have Takeover Defenses?” at the Financial Research Association Conference, December 2011

Best Teacher Award, UW Technology Management MBA graduating class, June 2011

William F. Sharpe Award for Scholarship in Financial Research (for best JFQA paper in 2008) for “The Cost to Firms of Cooking the Books,” July 2009

Best Paper Award, CRSP Forum for “Do Short Sellers Detect Overpriced Firms? Evidence from SEC Enforcement Actions,” November 2008

Best Paper Award, CRSP Forum 2006, for “The Cost to Firms of Cooking the Books,” November 2006

KPMG/Peat Marwick Ph.D Project – Finance Doctoral Students Association inaugural award for “Outstanding Service, Leadership, and Commitment to the Finance Profession,” June 2005

Griliches Prize in Empirical Economics, for “Public Versus Private Initiative in Arctic Exploration: The Effects of Incentives and Organizational Structure.” The award is selected from papers published in the Journal of Political Economy from 1999 through 2002

Academic Service

Associate Editor, The Journal of Finance (current)

Associate Editor, Journal of Financial Economics (current)

Associate Editor, Journal of Financial and Quantitative Analysis (current)

Associate Editor, Management Science (current)

Associate Editor, Managerial and Decision Sciences (current)

Associate Editor, The North American Journal of Economics and Finance (current)

Member, Financial Economists Roundtable (current)

International Research Fellow at the Oxford University Centre for Corporate Reputation (current)

Board of Trustees, Financial Management Association, 2008-present

Searle Civil Justice Institute Task Force on the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, 2011-2014

President, Financial Management Association, 2007-2008

Vice President-Program for the 2005 program, Financial Management Association, 2005

Faculty Director, Financial Management Association, 2002-2004

Advisory Committee for the National Association of Corporate Directors, Seattle Chapter, 2006-2011

Director, CFO Forum, 2004-2007

Director of the Environmental Management Program, 1991-1993

Managing Editor, Journal of Financial and Quantitative Analysis, 1989-2003

Selected Presentations

Keynote address, Drexel Corporate Governance Conference, April 2015

Keynote address, Challenges in Corporate Governance conference, Helsinki, March 2014

University Forum guest speakers series, University of Nevada, Las Vegas, November 2013

Keynote address, Financial Markets and Corporate Governance Conference 2013, Wellington, NZ, April 2013

Keynote address, Property and Environment Research Center’s conference on “Financial Contracting, Transaction Costs, and Environmental Amenities”, July 2012

Keynote address, “Conference on Ethics, Fraud and Regulation,” CFA Institute, Toronto, April 2012