Welcome to Y'all Street: The 2026 Irving L. Goldberg Symposium

Wall Street is coming to the Lone Star State, with a new name: Y’all Street. Dedman Law is leading the ongoing discussion regarding the emergence of “Y’all Street” and its economic and legal implications.

In February, SMU Dedman School of Law and the Robert B. Rowling Center for Business Law & Leadership hosted the Irving L. Goldberg Symposium: Welcome to Y’all Street: Texas Corporations and Texas Shareholders.

Dedman Law kicked off the Goldberg Symposium with an evening fireside chat with Chancellor Kathaleen McCormick of the Delaware Court of Chancery, facilitated by A&O Shearman partner Alain Dermarkar. Chancellor McCormick explained the inner workings of the Court of Chancery and her role as Chancellor. She also described the demands placed on the court and its judges by the profile, complexity, and volume of cases brought before the court. She entertained questions from the audience, including the possible effects that the creation of the Texas Business Court may have on Delaware caseloads.

The following day, the symposium opened with a discussion on “Leaving Delaware,” commonly referred to as “DExit.” For decades, Delaware has been the undisputed home of American corporate law, but cracks have been forming in that dominance. High-profile companies like Tesla have publicly abandoned the state, raising questions about whether the First State’s reign is coming to an end. This panel explored what was driving corporations to reconsider their Delaware incorporation and what destinations like Texas and Nevada are offering to lure them away. Panelists debated whether this exodus represented a fundamental shift in corporate law or merely a passing trend.

Moderator: 

• Christine Hurt, Senior Associate Dean for Academic Affairs, Alan R. Bromberg Centennial Chair in Corporate, Partnership, Business and Securities Law, and Professor of Law, SMU Dedman School of Law 

Panelists: 

• Wendy Couture, James E. Wilson Distinguished Professor of Law, University of Idaho School of Law

• Judge Grant Dorfman, Division 11 Business Court Division and Administrative Presiding Judge

• Benjamin Edwards, Associate Dean for Faculty Development and Research and Professor of Law, UNLV William S. Boyd School of Law

• Lauren Pringle, Editor-in-Chief, The Chancery Daily 

• Marc Steinberg, Rupert and Lillian Radford Chair in Law and Professor of Law, SMU Dedman School of Law 

The second panel shifted the conversation to Texas capital markets, including the Texas Stock Exchange and the potential to develop a fund of Texas-based companies dubbed the “Texas Fund” to encourage the participation of everyday Texans in corporate governance.

Texas is no longer content to be just an energy powerhouse. It now wants to be a capital markets hub as well. The Texas Stock Exchange is positioning itself as a serious alternative to the traditional exchanges, and both the NYSE and NASDAQ have already established a presence in the Dallas-Fort Worth area. This panel examined what TXSE is looking for in listed companies, why issuers might choose to list there, and what this growing concentration of exchange activity in Texas could mean for retail investors. Panelists also explored the innovative “Texas Fund” proposal, which would give everyday Texans a direct ownership stake in the state’s homegrown companies.

Moderator: 

• Carliss N. Chatman, Professor of Law, SMU Dedman School of Law 

Panelists: 

• Kit Addleman, Partner, Haynes Boone

• Nicole Chambers, Global Managing Director, Texas Stock Exchange

• Sergio Alberto Gramitto Ricci, Associate Professor of Law, Hofstra University Maurice A. Deane School of Law

• Renée Jones, Professor and Dr. Thomas F. Carney Distinguished Scholar, Boston College Law School 

After a luncheon sponsored by Haynes Boone, attendees turned their attention to the third panel.

The panel shifted the focus to retail investors as the retail investor revolution that shook Wall Street in 2021 is now reshaping corporate governance with Texas now at the center of the action. This panel examined recent amendments to the Texas Business Organizations Code that allow companies to require increased shareholdings before investors can submit shareholder proposals or bring derivative suits. The discussion also addressed the SEC’s recent withdrawal from the Rule 14a-8 no action letter review process, the SEC’s signal that Texas’s new ownership thresholds may serve as grounds for proposal exclusion, and the anticipated amendments to Rule 14a-8 expected in 2026. Panelists rounded out the conversation by examining ExxonMobil’s groundbreaking Retail Investor Voting Program. This was a must-attend session for anyone tracking the shifting balance of power between corporations and their smallest shareholders.

Moderator: 

• Ann Lipton, Professor of Law, University of Colorado School of Law 

Panelists: 

• Christopher J. Babcock, Partner, Foley & Lardner LLP & President, Alliance for Corporate Excellence

• James McRitchie, Publisher, Corpgov.net

• Lucas Moskowitz, Senior Vice President, General Counsel, and Corporate Secretary, Robinhood Markets 

• Christina M. Sautter, Associate Dean for Research and Professor of Law, SMU Dedman School of Law 

The symposium closed with a final panel on institutional investors and proxy advisors.

Texas has emerged as a leading voice challenging the influence of large institutional investors, particularly the so-called Big Three asset managers (BlackRock, State Street, and Vanguard). This panel examined Texas’s aggressive stance toward these institutional giants and the policy rationale behind recent legislative and regulatory actions. Panelists also addressed Texas’s treatment of proxy advisory firms like ISS and Glass Lewis, whose voting recommendations have long shaped corporate elections. From debates over fiduciary duty to anti-ESG legislation, the discussion tackled the most contentious questions in modern shareholder voting.

Moderator: 

• Christina M. Sautter, Associate Dean for Research and Professor of Law, SMU Dedman School of Law 

Panelists: 

• Jill E. Fisch, Saul A. Fox Distinguished Professor of Business Law, University of Pennsylvania Carey School of Law

• Bruce H. Goldfarb, President and Chief Executive Officer, Okapi Partners

• Ann Lipton, Professor of Law and Laurence W. DeMuth Chair of Business Law, University of Colorado Law School

• Jeffrey P. Mahoney, General Counsel, Council of Institutional Investors 

The Financial Times highlighted the Y’all Street Symposium in a March 2026 article. On the relative competitiveness of Texas, Associate Dean for Research Christina Sautter told the Financial Times, “It’s kind of the Wild West still” and “Texas has real assets in this competition [but] you could see a race to the bottom on shareholder rights that ultimately undermines confidence in Texas.”

Texas certainly does have real assets in the competition. “Texas has emerged as the preeminent commercial center in the U.S.,” Director of the Rowling Center for Business Law & Leadership, Eric Hinton said. “With the creation of the Texas Stock Exchange and the Texas Business Court, as well as the relocation of key industries and companies to the area, there is no better time to be in Dallas and at Dedman Law.”

With premier business and corporate law programs, Dedman Law continues to bring expertise and innovation to the conversation.

“Dedman Law is providing valuable thought leadership on the latest developments in Texas corporate law,” Senior Associate Dean for Academic Affairs, Christine Hurt said. “Not only do we have deep faculty expertise in corporate governance in both Delaware and Texas, but we also have faculty members with views on all sides of the issues surrounding shareholder power and board discretion. An added bonus is that we are rooted in Dallas, the heart of Y’all Street, where corporate headquarters and capital formation meet.”