24/08/2026
What if could make easier to understand without making it less rigorous?
At Bocconi, Marco Ventoruzzo (Full Professor of Corporate Law) has brought cases into the classroom through an unusual medium: comic books. For his International Management students, he transforms major business and legal disputes into visual stories, helping them follow facts, actors and legal principles in a more immediate way.
One example is the dispute involving Henry Ford and the Dodge Brothers in the early 1900s, a landmark case that becomes easier to explore when legal complexity is paired with images, dialogue and narrative. The goal is not to simplify by reducing substance, but to make difficult concepts more accessible. As Ventoruzzo explains, the idea came during his time in the United States, where legal tradition is rich in cases that lend themselves well to visual storytelling. US cases, including those involving ESG issues, often present conflicts that are polarized and clearly structured, making them particularly suitable for adaptation into comics.
The method still requires careful preparation. Historical facts must be checked, and attention must be paid to who said what and in which context. Artificial Intelligence can make the production of the comic faster, but the teaching value depends on the accuracy of the material and on how it is integrated into the lesson.
Yet this approach is not meant to replace traditional teaching. For Ventoruzzo, innovation in is valuable when it supports understanding and interaction, but some technical concepts, information and methods still need to be learned through more conventional study. Alternative tools work best when they complement, rather than substitute, rigorous analysis. Students seem to value this balance. They describe comics as an effective way to grasp facts and context, especially when dealing with different legal systems. Visual storytelling and role-playing can help students remember key elements and legal principles, making classes more dynamic and engaging. At the same time, comics are most useful as a bridge: they support the first understanding of a case, but need to be followed by more in-depth and technical analysis.
does not mean abandoning rigor. It means finding new ways to open access to complex knowledge. In this case, comics become a tool to make commercial law more memorable, more engaging and more connected to how students learn today.
