Kalshi v. CFTC - Round I

Part X - Understanding the history of the Dodd-Frank Act

Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.

Those were the words uttered by Spanish-American philosopher and essayist George Santayana. That piece of wisdom applies to nearly all areas of life, including law.

Here at NFI, we have always believed that understanding a statute requires the context into which the law is launched. History matters, and it’s not just the legislative history either; it’s also the economic conditions and the cultural forces that have had a meaningful impact.

What was the environment like when Dodd-Frank was enacted? Two important developments played a major role in its creation: 1) The development of the terrorism contracts at the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA); and 2) The economic recession of 2008.

The path to correctly interpreting the Dodd-Frank Act when it comes to the event markets-related provisions runs through understanding these two forces.