Going National: The Life Insurance Industry's Campaign for Federal Regulation after the Civil War
Keyword(s):
Life insurance corporations were among the first businesses to expand their activities across state lines in the mid-nineteenth century. Yet their efforts were often impeded by protectionist state laws and uneven state regulations. The industry reacted by forming a trade association that pressed for federal regulation of multistate insurance sales. This article examines the life insurance industry's attempts in Congress and in the courts to alter the balance of federalism and to promote free trade in a growing national market.