Customer Reviews

Prophets of Regulation: Charles Francis Adams; Louis D. Brandeis; James M. Landis; Alfred E. Kahn

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The book chronicles tidy snapshots of the lives and careers of 4 different men whose influence in corporate regulation remains unrivaled. I particularly enjoyed the chapter on Brandeis. It is terribly unfortunate to contemporary American society that a man like Justice Louis Brandeis is not still alive and a sitting judge with the Supremes. Brandeis's intellect and legacy puts the 9 slugs currently sitting on the bench to shame.

Government regulation of business is always a topic of controversy, but few people know anything about its origins. This book provides a history of the origins of government regulation in the US, by specifically focusing on four important individuals and how they shaped US regulations. Though they are important, their influence was primarily through the executive and judicial branches of the federal government. The book should have included a great legislator along with the four individuals it focused on.

The book is tedious and dry, but not difficult to read. The topic matter is well explained with lots of references, but a lot of text could (and should) have been replaced with charts, graphs, flowcharts, and timelines. I would not recommend this book as an introductory text to government regulations, but more for the well-read observer.