Francine LAFONTAINE

Francine Lafontaine is Professor of Business Economics and Public Policy at the University of Michigan Business School and a Professor of Economics at the University of  Michigan’s Department of Economics. Lafontaine's areas of interest include Industrial Organization, Vertical Relationships, Contracting and Franchising. She has studied extensively and continues to work on the economics of franchise contracting, applying recent advances in contract theory and vertical relationships to the analysis of franchising contracts. She has become a leading expert in that area. Among Lafontaine’s publications: "Retail Contracting: Theory and Practice" (with Margaret Slade), Journal of Industrial Economics; "Targeting Managerial Control: Evidence from Franchising" (with Kathryn L. Shaw), RAND Journal of Economics.