A former interim dean of Columbia Law School, Robert E. Scott is an internationally recognized scholar and teacher in the fields of contracts, commercial transactions, and bankruptcy. He is co-director of the Center for Contract and Economic Organization at Columbia Law School, which fosters research on contracts, firms, and organizations.

Scott is the co-author of numerous books, including The Three and a Half Minute Transaction: Boilerplate and the Limits of Contract Design, which explores the potential repercussions of boilerplate language in contracts. He previously served as the president of the American Law and Economics Association and is a fellow of the American Academy of Arts & Sciences, a Life Fellow of the American Bar Foundation, and a member of the American Law Institute. Prior to joining the Law School’s faculty, Scott was a professor at the University of Virginia School of Law, including 10 years as its dean.