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Andrew P. Morriss

Professor of Law

 Publications 

Morriss_Andrew1

“Lawyers build things with words; engineers build with cement and steel. But without the businesses and transactions lawyers build, we wouldn’t be able to build nearly so much in the physical world.”

Get to Know Andrew P. Morriss

What drew you to the law?

When I was growing up, I argued with my parents a lot. They always said, “You’ll grow up to be a lawyer.” I didn’t know any lawyers, so I had no idea what it would be like, but I never considered anything else. Fortunately, it has turned out to be something I love.

What do you enjoy most about teaching?

I love seeing the light come on when students figure out how to put together a legal analysis of a problem, and they realize that they can be a success at this profession.

What do you hope students gain from your courses?

In my Cayman Islands class, students get to meet a large group of financial professionals and lawyers who do some very sophisticated transactions offshore. The students learn how to put those sorts of deals together — doing things like enabling a non-profit hospital to serve more clients by lowering its insurance costs. In my Due Diligence course, students learn how to figure out when the numbers in a deal are crooked. In both courses, students learn how real lawyers practice law from the professionals I bring in.

What did you do prior to entering academia?

I clerked for U.S. District Judge Barefoot Sanders and for U.S. Magistrates William Sanderson and John Tolle in Dallas. I also practiced in Texas Rural Legal Aid’s offices in Hereford and Plainview.

What are you passionate about outside of the law?

There are things outside the law? My family and doing things outdoors.

What are your research interests?

My research focuses on international financial centers like the Cayman Islands and the Channel Islands, and on regulatory issues involving the environment and energy.

Publications

Link to my publications.

Presentations

  • “Silent Spring at 50,” Reason Salon at the Museum of Sex, New York, New York (December 2012)
  • “The Resource Curse,” Southern Economic Association (November 2012)
  • “Green Jobs,” UC Irvine Federalist Society (October 2012)
  • “Green Jobs: Trick or Treat?” Pepperdine Federalist Society (October 2012)
  • “The Visible Hand: Energy Policy in America,” Bakersfield, California, Federalist Society chapter (May 2012)
  • “The False Promise of Green Energy,” Acton Institute (May 2012)
  • “Growth and Economic Freedom,” Fund for American Studies Donor Conference (April 2012)
  • “The Role of Rankings in Legal Education,” University of Chicago Federalist Society (November 2011)
  • “The Role of Rankings in Legal Education,” Dusquesne University Federalist Society (November 2011)
  • “Keynote Address,” IFC Forum, London, UK (September 2011)
  • “The Role of Rankings in Legal Education,” Gonzaga University Federalist Society (October 2011)
  • “An FME Approach to Mining,” University of Idaho Federalist Society (October 2011)
  • “Public Policy Analysis,” Neetishala, Nepal (July 2011)
  • “The Role of OFCs,” Intituto Bruno Leoni, Milan, Italy (June 2011)
  • “Introduction of William T. Bogart,” Maryville College (May 2011)
  • “Faith, Economics, and the Scholarly Vocation,” Maryville College (May 2011)
  • “False Promise of Green Energy,” Cato Book Forum (April 2011)
  • “Testimony on Airport Security,” Pennsylvania Legislature (April 2011)
  • “Free Market Environmentalism,” George Mason University Law & Economics Center, Judicial Institute (January 2011)
  • “Gasoline: Markets and the Role of Government,” Provocative Lecture Series, San Jose State University (May 2009)
  • “Green Jobs, Myth or Reality?” Manatee College of Business, University of South Florida-Sarasota (April 2009)
  • “Free Market Environmentalism,” Fordham Federalist Society (February 2009)
  • “Common Law, Property and Federalism,” The Road to Harmonious Development: 30 Years of Chinese Economic Reform, Renmin University, Beijing, China (co-sponsored by the Cato Institute) (November 2008)
  • “The Market for Legal Education,” Baylor Pre-Law Society (November 2008)
  • “Regulation by Litigation,” International Policy Network (August 2008)
  • “Regulation by Litigation,” Adam Smith Club Annual Banquet, Campbell University (April 2008)
  • “Massachusetts v. EPA,” The Supreme Court: Past and Prologue – A Look at the October 2006 and October 2007 Terms, Cato Institute Center for Constitutional Studies (September 2007)
  • “Lessons from History for IP” (with Craig Nard), International Policy Network, London (March 2007)
  • “Interest Groups and Institutions in Patent Law from 1790-1870,” Economic History Society meeting, Exeter, UK (with Craig Nard) (March 2007)
  • Commenter, Mont Pelerin Society General Meeting, Guatemala (2006)
  • Centro para Análisis de las Decisiones Públicas at Universidad Francisco Marroquin seminar Naturaleza Humana: ¿Destructora o Creadora? Presentations on Mining Law: Lessons from the U.S. Experience and Water and Markets

Expertise

  • Offshore financial centers and transactions
  • Regulatory analysis
  • Energy regulation

Courses

  • Due Diligence
  • Offshore Financial Transactions

Academic Experience

  • Professor of Law 
    Texas A&M University School of Law (July 2014-present)
  • Professor 
    Texas A&M University Bush School of Government and Public Service (​September 2021-present)
  • Founding Dean
    Texas A&M University School of Innovation (I-School) and Vice President for Entrepreneurship and Economic Development (August 2017-September 2021)
  • Dean & Anthony G. Buzbee Dean’s Endowed Chair
    Texas A&M University School of Law (July 2014-July 2017)
  • D. Paul Jones, Jr. & Charlene A. Jones Chairholder in Law & Professor of Business
    University of Alabama (August 2010-June 2014)
  • H. Ross & Helen Workman Professor of Law, Professor of Business, Professor, Institute of Government and Public Affairs
    University of Illinois (August 2006-August 2010)
  • Galen J. Roush Professor of Business Law and Regulation
    Case Western Reserve University (August 2000-August 2007)
  • Professor of Law and Associate Professor of Economics
    Case Western Reserve University (August 1998-August 2000
  • Associate Professor of Law and Associate Professor of Economics
    Case Western Reserve University (August 1995-August 1998)
  • Assistant Professor of Law and Assistant Professor of Economics
    Case Western Reserve University (August 1992-August 1995)

Education

  • Ph.D. in Economics, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
  • J.D., The University of Texas at Austin School of Law, with high honors
  • M.Pub.Aff., Johnson School of Public Affairs, University of Texas at Austin
  • A.B., Princeton University, cum laude

Contact Info