Editor(s)
Leah F. Chanin
Files
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Description
- Introduction
- Federal Law
- State Law
- Federal Law Framework
- Office of the Comptroller of the Currency
- Office of Thrift Supervision
- Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System
- Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation
- Resolution Trust Corporation
- Federal Housing Finance Board
- Federal Home Loan Bank Board
- State Regulatory Framework
- Additional Research Sources
- Appendices
Title of Book
Specialized Legal Research
Publication Date
1997
Document Type
Book Chapter
Publisher
Aspen Law & Business
Disciplines
Banking and Finance Law | Legal Writing and Research
Recommended Citation
Penny A. Hazelton,
Banking Law, in
Specialized Legal Research
10-1
(Leah F. Chanin eds., 1997).
Available at:
https://digitalcommons.law.uw.edu/faculty-chapters/28
Comments
Research in the banking law field suffers from complexity, which is fueled by the imprecision of the scope and definition of banking law as a subject and the multiplicity of sources the researcher must consult.
As our banking system developed, the term bank normally referred to commercial banks—that is, depository institutions with investment and broad lending powers for short- or intermediate-term purposes. Savings banks and savings and loan institutions, which existed early in our history but were small in number until after World War II, were not considered banks by the above definition. The primary function of these thrift institutions was to collect passive deposits (savings) and invest in long-term real estate mortgages. The thrift industry is still closely tied (despite its broadened role) to housing and real estate interests. Thus, the field of banking law, in its most limited sense, would only include cases, laws, regulations, and secondary publications for and about commercial banks. Recent changes in definition and scope of banking institutions and the emergence of new types of institutions performing bank-like functions have muddled the definition problems even further.
For the purpose of this chapter, banking law includes resources about the law regulating commercial banks and thrift institutions (savings and loan association and saving banks). Collectively, thrifts and commercial banks will be referred to as banking institutions. Some sources refer to both types as depository institutions. Credit unions and other types of financial institutions (i.e., those performing bank-like functions) are not included in this chapter.