Richard Cordray, the first director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) created under President Obama and a former Ohio Attorney General, has been selected as the Rappaport Distinguished Visiting Professor at Boston College Law School for the fall semester.
As the seventh Jerome Lyle Rappaport Visiting Professor in Law and Public Policy, Cordray will draw upon his broad background in government service and consumer advocacy to illuminate key matters of policy-making. He will offer a seminar,“Consumer Finance Law and Federalism,” present a community lecture, and participate in classes and panel discussions—all remotely—throughout the semester.
“We are thrilled to welcome Richard Cordray,” said Professor Dan Kanstroom, the Rappaport Center’s faculty director. He has had a distinguished, multi-faceted career, marked by excellence in many arenas. Throughout his professional life he has demonstrated a deep, enduring commitment to the public good, and a willingness to fight to defend important principles. Although it is unfortunate that he will not be here in person, our students, faculty, and community will surely benefit from his presence.”
Among Cordray’s achievements are years in Ohio state government as a legislator, treasurer, and solicitor general and another six years at the CFPB. His book Watchdog, published in March, delves into the agency’s work on behalf of consumers. He has also taught at Ohio State Law School, argued seven cases before the US Supreme Court, and served as a law clerk for Supreme Court Justices Byron White and Anthony Kennedy.
A graduate of Michigan State University James Madison College, Oxford University, and the University of Chicago Law School, Cordray lives in Grove City, Ohio, with his wife Peggy, a professor at Capital University Law School, and has college-age twins.
Cordray’s community address, “Comparing the Economic Effects of the COVID Crisis of 2020 with the Financial Crisis of 2008,” will be held September 23 from 12-1:15 p.m. To register, click here.