Abstract
This LL.M. thesis examines the constitutionality of regional interstate banking laws in the United States, tracing the historical development of the dual banking system from the National Bank Acts of the 1860s through the modern era of interstate expansion. The work analyzes the federal legislative framework governing geographic restrictions on banking, including the McFadden Act's ban on interstate branching and the Douglas Amendment to the Bank Holding Company Act of 1956, and surveys the three principal legislative approaches to interstate banking (regional entry, regional-with-trigger-to-nationwide entry, and nationwide entry) as adopted by the New England states. The central analysis focuses on the U.S. Supreme Court's unanimous 1985 decision in Northeast Bancorp, Inc. v. Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, examining the Court's treatment of challenges under the Interstate Commerce Clause, the Compact Clause, and the Equal Protection Clause. The thesis concludes that the regional interstate banking laws do not violate either the Constitution's express provisions or the non-textual concerns of federalism, and that state-enacted interstate banking regions represent a sound step toward a stable national banking industry.
Repository Citation
Matton, Patricia, "The Constitutionality of Regional Interstate Banking Laws" (1989). LLM Theses and Essays. 353.
https://digitalcommons.law.uga.edu/stu_llm/353