On September 3rd, Associate Dean Mark Sundahl delivered a paper at the University of Coimbra, the oldest university in Portugal. Dean Sundahl’s paper was delivered in response to a paper by Prof. Alberto Maffi of the University of Milan regarding the nature of maritime finance in ancient Athens. The presentation was part of “Symposion 2015” a biennial conference that gathers the leading scholars in the field of ancient Greek Law for four days of papers and debate on various legal issues. Dean Sundahl’s paper focused on the Athenian practice of requiring lenders to share in the risk of the debtor when financing trade missions throughout the Mediterranean. Drawing on the rationale underlying similar practices in Islamic law, Dean Sundahl suggested that the requirement to share risk compelled lenders to avoid high-risk ventures and ensure the efficient placement of capital.