Kenneth G. Elzinga

Kenneth G. Elzinga is an economics professor at the University of Virginia. His two major claims to fame are his antitrust expertise and his co-authorship of a highly successful trio of murder mystery novels in which the sleuth, dubbed Henry Spearman, solves the murder using principles of economics.

Elzinga's antitrust expertise led the U.S. Supreme Court to its 5-4 decision in June 28, 2007, in "Leegin Creative Leather Products, Inc. v. PSKS, Inc." that minimum retail pricing schemes, formerly treated automatically as illegal under the Sherman Antitrust Act, may offer benefits to consumers.

As for his novels, they are written under the pseudonym Marshall Jevons, a mixture of economics pathfinders Alfred Marshall and William Stanley Jevons in collaboration with now-retired Trinity University professor William Breit. The books are now assigned reading in many introductory college economics classes.

Publishing and accolades

Elzinga's academic career began with his B.A. from Kalamazoo College (1963). He went on to earn both his masters (1966) and his Ph.D. from Michigan State (1967). His career has already spanned over 40 years, and he currently holds a distinguished chair at the University of Virginia. Himself the first winner of the UVA "Cavaliers’ Distinguished Teaching Professorship," Elzinga's scholarship has been recognized by the Southern Economic Association with an annual Distinguished Teaching award in his name. [cite news | url= http://www.utc.edu/Outreach/SouthernEconomicAssociation/elzinga-awards.html | title= Kenneth G. Elzinga Distinguished Teaching Awards | date=2006 | accessdate=2007-07-08 | publisher=Southern Economic Association ]

He has served as a Cambridge Fellow and currently serves on the editorial boards of "The Journal of Markets and Morality" and "The Antitrust Bulletin". His scholarly work has appeared in the leading journals of economics, with the Florida State's Gus A. Stavros Center praising him as "probably the nation's most successful teacher of college-level economics." [cite news | url= http://www.coss.fsu.edu/stavros/teachers/elzinga.shtml | title= Gus A. Stavros Center: Kenneth Elzinga | date=unknown | accessdate=2007-07-08 | publisher=Gus A. Stavros Center ]

He served as a key plaintiff's witness in the government's 2004 antitrust case against Oracle Corporation over the acquisition of PeopleSoft, a case that was resolved with a settlement in September that year. [cite news | url= http://www.nytimes.com/2004/12/14/technology/14judge.html?ex=1184040000&en=d430547504c529b4&ei=5070 | title= As Suits End, Judge Says Deal Was Only Way to Resolve Fight | date=2004-12-14 | accessdate=2007-07-08 | publisher=New York Times ]

His CV that was filed as an exhibit in the above case lists more than 50 publications on such topics as airline deregulation, cartels, predatory pricing, and even the beer industry. [cite news | url= http://www.usdoj.gov/atr/cases/f204200/204231.htm | title= GOVERNMENT EXHIBIT P4014-A | date=2004 | accessdate=2007-07-08 | publisher=Justice Department ] He has won the UVA Alumni Association’s Distinguished Professor Award, the Commonwealth of Virginia’s Outstanding Faculty Award. And in 1992, he received the highest honor that UVA can bestow upon a faculty member, the Thomas Jefferson Award.

His co-authored mystery titles are "Murder at the Margin" (Thomas Norton & Daughters, 1978), "The Fatal Equilibrium" (The MIT Press, 1985), and "A Deadly Indifference" (Carrol & Graf, 1995). Also with Breit, he is co-author of "The Antitrust Casebook: Milestones in Economic Regulation" (Dryden Press, 1982).

Personal

Elzinga makes no secret of his Christian religious faith, and also makes a point each year of hosting several students at his Charlottesville-area home for Thanksgiving dinners.

Notes

External links

* [http://www.readthehook.com/Stories/2005/06/23/hotseatEcon101MysteryNovel.html "Econ 101: Mystery novelist polishes his Spearman"]
* [http://www.amazon.com/s?search-type=ss&index=books&field-author=Marshall%20Jevons Amazon.com page for Marshall Jevons]
* [http://www.people.virginia.edu/~kge8z Elzinga's website at University of Virginia]