One of the nation's most distinguished scholars in the field of bankruptcy, Professor Westbrook has been a pioneer in this area in two respects: empirical research and international/comparative studies. Professor Westbrook also teaches and writes in commercial law and international business litigation. He practiced in all these areas for more than a decade with Surrey & Morse (now part of Jones, Day) in Washington, D.C., where he was a partner, before joining the faculty in 1980.
Bankruptcy; international business litigation and arbitration; commercial law especially Article 9; secured credit
He has been Visiting Professor at Harvard Law School and the University of London, and is a member of the American Law Institute, the National Bankruptcy Conference, and the American College of Bankruptcy. He has served as a consultant to the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank. He was the United States Reporter for the ALI's Transnational Insolvency Project and co-head of the United States delegation to the UN (UNCITRAL) conference on cross-border insolvency. He is a director of the International Insolvency Institute and President-Elect of the International Academy of Commercial and Consumer Law.
He is co-author of The Law of Debtors and Creditors (Aspen, 4th ed., 2001), As We Forgive Our Debtors: Bankruptcy and Consumer Credit in America (Oxford, 1989), and The Fragile Middle Class (Yale, 2000).
He has twice been named the Outstanding Teacher at the Law School.
