Professor Susan Watson researches and teaches corporate law and corporate governance in the Law School at Auckland University, New Zealand. She has a particular interest in the corporate form and in her research seeks to understand how the form developed, why it is so successful, and the economic and societal impact of corporations.
Her research has been published widely in New Zealand and internationally; she has edited treatises and textbooks, five collections and numerous articles. Her work has been cited and discussed by other scholars in the field and by courts at all levels including the UK Supreme Court. Until recently Susan was joint editor of the New Zealand Business Law Quarterly, and is currently the New Zealand editor for the Journal of Business Law. In 2016 she won the 2015 Legal Research Foundation Sir Ian Barker Published Article Award for How the Company Became an Entity – A New Understanding of Corporate Law. This award was given for the best article, essay or discrete book chapter published by a New Zealand-based author in 2015.
Before joining the University, Susan worked as a staff solicitor and associate in two city law firms, and taught part of the Institute of Professional Legal Studies law professionals course. Before joining the Law School, she was Professor of Commercial Law in the Business School where she was Head of Department from 2008 to 2011 and Associate Dean Academic Faculty in 2011. She is currently Deputy Dean of the Law School.