Michael D Frakes | Scholars@Duke

Michael D Frakes
Professor of Law

Michael Frakes joined the Duke Law faculty in June, 2016 from Northwestern University’s Pritzker School of Law, where he was an associate professor. He also holds a secondary faculty appointment in the Duke Economics Department. He is generally interested in empirical research in the areas of health law and innovation policy. His research in health is largely focused on understanding how certain legal and financial incentives affect the decisions of physicians and other health care providers. His research in innovation policy centers on the relationship between the financing of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office and key aspects of its decision making. Michael also serves as a Research Associate at the National Bureau of Economic Research. While at Northwestern, Frakes also served as a faculty fellow at the Institute for Policy Research. He was previously an assistant professor of Law at Cornell Law School from 2011-2014.

Frakes’ scholarship has appeared in, or is forthcoming in, various economics and law & economics journals including the American Economic Review, the Review of Economics and Statistics, the Journal of Public Economics, the Journal of Health Economics, the Journal of Empirical Legal Studies, and the American Law and Economics Review, along with various law reviews including the Stanford Law Review, the University of Chicago Law Review, the Duke Law Journal, and the Vanderbilt Law Review. He is currently serving as the Principal Investigation on an R01 award from the NIH, exploring the effects of immunizing physicians from medical liability on the extent and quality of the medical care they deliver.

Frakes received his BS in economics from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 2001, his JD, cum laude, from Harvard Law School in 2005, and a PhD in economics from MIT in 2009. He was an associate at Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom in Wilmington, Del., from 2005 to 2007. From 2009 to 2011, he was an academic fellow at the Petrie-Flom Center for Health Law Policy, Biotechnology, and Bioethics at Harvard Law School.

Current Appointments & Affiliations

Professor of Law, Duke Law School, Duke University 2016
Professor of Economics, Economics, Trinity College of Arts & Sciences 2016
Associate of the Duke Initiative for Science & Society, Duke Science & Society, Initiatives 2017

Contact Information

Duke Law School Rm 3188, Box 90362, Durham, NC 27708
Duke Law School Rm 3188, Box 90362, Durham, NC 27708
michael.frakes@law.duke.edu (919) 613-7185

Background
Education, Training, & Certifications
- Ph.D., Massachusetts Institute of Technology 2009
- J.D., Harvard University 2005
Research
Selected Grants
- The Impact of Exempting Medical Providers from Malpractice Protection awarded by National Bureau of Economic Research 2016 - 2018
External Relationships
- AbbVie Inc.
- National Bureau of Economic Research Inc.
Publications & Artistic Works
Selected Publications
- Academic Articles
  - Frakes, M., and M. Wasserman. “Are There as Many Trademark Offices as Trademark Examiners?” Duke Law Journal 69 (2020).
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  - Frakes, M., and M. Wasserman. “Empirical Scholarship on the Prosecution Process at the USPTO,” 2019, 77–91.
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  - Frakes, M., and M. Wasserman. “Irrational Ignorance at the Patent Office.” Vanderbilt Law Review 72, no. 3 (2019): 975–1030.
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  - Frakes, M., and M. Wasserman. “Patent Trial and Appeal Board's Consistency-Enhancing Function.” Iowa Law Review 104, no. 5 (2019): 2417–46.
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  - Elsamadicy, Aladine A., Amanda R. Sergesketter, Michael D. Frakes, and Shivanand P. Lad. “Review of Neurosurgery Medical Professional Liability Claims in the United States.” Neurosurgery 83, no. 5 (November 1, 2018): 997–1006. https://doi.org/10.1093/neuros/nyx565.
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  - Frakes, M., A. Chandra, and A. Malani. “Challenges to Reducing Discrimination and Health Inequity Through Existing Civil Rights Laws.” Health Affairs 36, no. 6 (2017): 1041–47.
  - Frakes, M., and J. Koehlmoos. “Defensive Medicine: Evidence from Military Immunity,” 2017.
  - Frakes, M., and M. Wasserman. “Is the Time Allocated to Review Patent Applications Inducing Examiners to Grant Invalid Patents? Evidence from Microlevel Application Data.” Review of Economics and Statistics 99, no. 3 (2017): 550–63.
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  - Frakes, M., and M. Wasserman. “Knowledge Spillovers and Learning in the Workplace: Evidence from the U.S. Patent Office,” 2017.
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  - Frakes, M., and S. Seabury. “The Effect of Malpractice Law on Physician Supply: Evidence from Negligence-Standard Reforms,” 2017.
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  - Frakes, M. “Procrastination in the Workplace: Evidence from the U.S. Patent Office,” 2016.
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  - Frakes, M., A. Chandra, and A. Malani. “Civil Rights Legislation and Racial Disparities in Health Care,” 2016.
  - Frakes, M., M. Frank, and S. Seabury. “The Impact of National Medical Liability Standards on Local Access to Physician Services,” 2016.
  - Frakes, M., and A. Jena. “Does Medical Malpractice Law Improve Health Care Quality?” Journal of Public Economics 143 (2016): 142–58.
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  - Frakes, M., and A. Jena. “Racial Disparities in Health Care: Geographic Causes and the Impact of Geographical Standardization in Malpractice Standard of Care Rules,” 2016.
  - Frakes, M., and J. Gruber. “The Effects of Medical Liability Immunities: Evidence from the Military Health System,” 2016.
  - Frakes, M., and M. Wasserman. “Patent Office Cohorts.” Duke Law Journal 65 (2016): 1601–55.
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  - Frakes, M. “The Surprising Relevance of Medical Malpractice Law.” University of Chicago Law Review 82 (2015): 317–91.
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  - Frakes, M., M. Frank, and S. Seabury. “Do Physicians Respond to Liability Standards?” Journal of Institutional & Theoretical Economics 171, no. 1 (2015): 58–77.
  - Frakes, M., and M. Harding. “The Effect of Statutory Rape Laws on Teen Birth Rates.” American Law & Economics Review 17, no. 2 (2015): 409–61.
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  - Frakes, M., and M. Wasserman. “Does the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office Grant Too Many Bad Patents?: Evidence from a Quasi-Experiment.” Stanford Law Review 67 (2015): 613–76.
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  - Frakes, M., and M. Wasserman. “The Failed Promise of User Fees: Empirical Evidence from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.” Journal of Empirical Legal Studies 11, no. 4 (2014): 602–36.
  - Frakes, M. “The Impact of Medical Liability Standards on Regional Variations in Physician Behavior: Evidence from the Adoption of National-Standard Rules.” American Economic Review 103, no. 1 (2013): 257–76.
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  - Frakes, M., and M. Wasserman. “Does Agency Funding Affect Decisionmaking?: An Empirical Assessment of the PTO's Granting Patterns.” Vanderbilt Law Review 66 (2013): 67–125.
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  - Frakes, M. “Defensive Medicine and Obstetric Practices.” Journal of Empirical Legal Studies 9, no. 3 (2012): 457–81.
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  - Frakes, M., and M. Harding. “The Deterrent Effect of Death Penalty Eligibility: Evidence from the Adoption of Child Murder Eligibility Factors.” American Law & Economics Review 11 (2009): 451–97.
  - Frakes, M. “Classified Boards and Firm Value.” Delaware Journal of Corporate Law 32 (2007): 113–58.
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  - Frakes, M., and J. Gruber. “Does Falling Smoking Lead to Rising Obesity?” Journal of Health Economics 25 (2006): 183–97.
- Book Sections
  - Frakes, M., and M. Wasserman. “Do Patent Law Suits Target Invalid Patents?” In Selection and Decision in the Judicial Process Around the World: Empirical Inquiries, 6–29. Cambridge University Press, 2019.
  - Frakes, M., M. Franks, and K. Rozema. “The Economics of Healthcare Rationing.” In The Oxford Handbook of U.S. Health Law, 914–33, 2017.
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- Reports
  - Frakes, M., and M. Wasserman. “Decreasing the Patent Office’s Incentives to Grant Invalid Patents,” 2017.
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Teaching & Mentoring
Recent Courses

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Education, Training, & Certifications

Selected Grants

External Relationships

Selected Publications

Academic Articles

Book Sections

Reports

Recent Courses