Professor Sarah J. Williams presents at the 2026 National Business Law Scholars Conference

CARLISLE, PA—Professor Sarah J. Williams presented her current research project during the 2026 National Business Law Scholars (NBLS) Conference, held May 26 and 27 at the UNLV William S. Boyd School of Law. Williams shared her review of Andrew Ross Sorkin’s recent book, 1929: Inside the Greatest Crash in Wall Street History. Her current work-in-progress, “Investment Positivism Is the New Main Event; Insider Trading Remains the Sideshow,” uses Sorkin’s recount of U.S. markets at the time of the October 1929 crash as a springboard for insights on federal government interventions in modern capital markets.

Sorkin’s book reflects on threats to securities markets identified after the 1929 crash and the regulations adopted in 1934 to address those threats. The review highlights the subordination of insider trading concerns to combat market manipulation after the crash. It identifies a potential market abuse that may be more deserving of attention than insider trading in today’s markets—the intrusion of the federal government in investment decision-making. Williams identifies this market threat as investment positivism.

This project continues a conversation she started while researching Congressional insider trading. Williams was honored to converse with other securities law scholars on this topic at the NBLS conference.