Karen Woody and Mark Drumbl Recognized with Lewis Prize for Excellence in Scholarship Woody, a corporate law scholar, and Drumbl, an expert in international law, were recognized for their outstanding scholarly work.

By Law Communications
February 14, 2024

Each year, the Frances Lewis Law Center at Washington and Lee awards two faculty members with the Lewis Prize for Excellence in Legal Scholarship for outstanding scholarly work. Law professors Karen Woody and Mark Drumbl were recognized this year for their efforts.

Professor Woody’s scholarship focuses on securities law, financial regulation, and white-collar crime. She has published her work in a number of journals including the American University Law Review, Arizona State Law Journal, Maryland Law Review, Stanford Law Review Online, Cardozo Law Review, Fordham Law Review, and the Journal of Corporation Law, among others.

Writing for the Lewis Law Center committee, Professor Brandon Hasbrouck highlighted Professor Woody’s most recent article, “Corporate Crime and Cooperation,” as a “terrific example of a traditional, thorough, set-piece law review article that is already having real-world impact.” The Law Center Committee praised the article for being “deeply researched and effectively delivered, providing important insights on current DOJ policies, including implications for different legal stakeholders.”

Professor Drumbl is the Class of 1975 Alumni Professor of Law and Director of the Transnational Law Institute. His research and teaching interests include public international law, global environmental governance, international criminal law, post-conflict justice, and transnational legal process. His work has been relied upon by the Supreme Court of Canada, the United Kingdom High Court, the United States Federal Court, and the Supreme Court of New York.

Professor Drumbl’s recent publications involve completed and forthcoming books critically considering the status of informers in totalitarian regimes and the way the law perceives violence perpetrated by children. The Law Center Committee noted that Professor Drumbl’s work reflects deep command of his subjects, which allows him to “transcend legal doctrine and to dare to engage ethereal themes and theory—such as the aesthetics of justice.”

“I am delighted to see my talented colleagues recognized for their extraordinary scholarship and research,” said Melanie Wilson, Dean of W&L Law. “In addition to their teaching abilities, Professors Woody and Drumbl are influencing the law and society in important ways.”

The Frances Lewis Law Center, directed by Professor Hasbrouck, is the independently funded faculty research and support arm of W&L Law. Established in 1978 with a generous gift from Frances and Sydney Lewis, the Law Center’s mandate is to support faculty research and scholarship that advances legal reform.

If you know a W&L faculty member who has done great, accolade-worthy things, tell us about them! Nominate them for an accolade.