Todd Zywicki Joins Cato as Senior Fellow

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Washington, D.C. – The Cato Institute today announced that Todd Zywicki, a Professor of Law at George Mason University’s Scalia School of Law, has joined the Institute as a Senior Fellow.

Zywicki, well known for his work on subprime lending, the effects of the Dodd‐​Frank legislation, and consumer credit, will supplement Cato’s efforts in the financial regulatory field as well as working with scholars in other disciplines affected by such regulations, including higher education. 

“My involvement with Cato goes back decades and my admiration of Cato goes back further than that,” said Zywicki. “This is the mother ship for those of us who believe in free markets, limited government, individual liberty, and the rule of law, and it’s a thrill for me to be able work with Cato on a more formal basis.”

Zywicki has authored scholarly articles for law reviews and economic journals on topics ranging from price competition to Operation “Choke Point” to bankruptcy. He served as editor of the Supreme Court Economic Review, published quarterly by the University of Chicago Press, from 2006 – 2017, during which time the Review was one of the most highly‐​cited journals of its kind.

“Adding a scholar of Todd’s intellect, expertise, and profile to the ranks of Cato’s policy experts is an exciting opportunity to strengthen further our outstanding team,” said Cato President and CEO Peter Goettler. “Whether law review articles, op‐​eds in the nation’s top newspapers, or even his authoritative lectures on public choice theory, so many of us have benefited from Todd’s work over the years. It’s with pride that I can now call him a colleague.”

Zywicki is co‐​author, with Cato’s Neal McCluskey, of the upcoming book, Unprofitable Schooling: America’s Broken Ivory Tower, which looks at rising college costs, student loan debt, and the war on for‐​profit colleges.

“What we’ve managed to do with higher education is to re‐​create everything that is wrong with healthcare,” Zywicki said. “The student loan program has set the government up as the third‐​party payer of college tuition, masking the true costs and leaving graduates with often‐​crippling debt.”

Zywicki also served as Policy Planning Director at the Federal Trade Commission from 2003–2004. He has taught law at Vanderbilt University, Georgetown, Boston College, and the Mississippi School of Law. He received his JD from the University of Virginia, his MA in Economics from Clemson University, and his BA in Economics from Dartmouth College.