The Rise and Fall of the Fraternal Life Insurer: Law and Finance in U.S. Life Insurance, 1870-1920

48 Pages Posted: 1 Oct 2003

See all articles by George H. Zanjani

George H. Zanjani

University of Alabama - Department of Economics, Finance and Legal Studies

Date Written: August 2003

Abstract

This paper studies the rise and fall of fraternal life insurance in the decades surrounding 1900. It shows that the rise of the fraternal life insurer took place while it was exempt from the solvency regulations that governed other insurance companies, and its fade into obscurity followed soon after this exemption ended. Enactment of fraternal regulation at the state level was associated with large drops in fraternal insurer formations. The evidence challenges the notion that claimant protection laws "enabled" insurance organizations to succeed by enhancing public confidence in their operations, suggesting instead that they were a burden on industry.

Keywords: Organizational Form, Law and Finance, Insurance Companies

JEL Classification: G220, G280, G380, K200, N210

Suggested Citation

Zanjani, George H., The Rise and Fall of the Fraternal Life Insurer: Law and Finance in U.S. Life Insurance, 1870-1920 (August 2003). Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=438740 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.438740

George H. Zanjani (Contact Author)

University of Alabama - Department of Economics, Finance and Legal Studies ( email )

361 Stadium Dr, Ste 200
Tuscaloosa, AL 35487
United States

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