Edward J. López is Professor of Economics and BB&T Distinguished Professor of Capitalism at Western Carolina University, where he teaches classes in economics and the moral foundations of capitalism. He previously taught public choice and economics of intellectual property at San Jose State University.

Edward is the Executive Director and Past President of the Public Choice Society, an international, inter-disciplinary association of collective action scholars founded in 1963. He is also Past President and board member of the Association of Private Enterprise Education and the Classical Liberals in the Carolinas. In 2007-08, he was a Resident Scholar at Liberty Fund.

Edward’s research focuses on the impacts of ideas and interests on institutions. Early papers estimated the effects of natural experiments and cross-state variation on term limits, eminent domain, committee assignments, and other political/legal institutions. His published books include The Pursuit of Justice: Law and Economics of Legal Institutions (Palgrave Macmillan, 2010) and Madmen, Intellectuals, and Academic Scribblers: The Economic Engine of Political Change (Stanford University Press, 2013, co-authored with Wayne A. Leighton). More information at www.edwardjlopez.com.