Education

Ph.D Business, Stanford Graduate School of Business, 2019

J.D., Stanford Law School, 2018

B.A., Oregon State University Honors College, 2011

Biography

Professor Atkinson's research focuses on the fields of corporate misconduct, contract law, and social choice theory. As an economist, he applies quantitative analysis to the study of the law.

He has published his research in both peer-reviewed journals and student edited law reviews. Some of Professor Atkinson's current research projects include examining how prosecutors' concerns for collateral consequences affect their assessments of corporate penalties; estimating corporations' profits from violating environmental laws; the behavioral effects of efforts clauses in contract design; and the design of better procedures for aggregating preferences.

An experienced teacher, he has previously taught courses at ETH Zurich, the University of Zurich, Northwestern Pritzker School of Law, and UCLA Law School. 

Professor Atkinson joined the faculty in 2021 from the Center for Law & Economics at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETH Zurich), where he was a postdoctoral researcher. Nate holds a Ph.D. in Business from the Stanford Graduate School of Business and a J.D. from Stanford Law School.