Against the Profit Motive

Parrillo, Nicholas R.

ISBN 10: 0300194757 / ISBN 13: 9780300194753

Published by Yale University Press, 2013

About this Item

In America today, a public official's lawful income consists of a salary. But until a century ago, the law frequently authorized officials to make money on a profit-seeking basis. Prosecutors won a fee for each defendant convicted. Tax collectors received a cut of each evasion uncovered. This book documents American government's "for-profit" past. Series: Yale Law Library Series in Legal History and Reference. Num Pages: 576 pages, 3 black-&-white illustrations. BIC Classification: 1KBB; JPP; LAZ. Category: (G) General (US: Trade). Dimension: 230 x 157 x 31. Weight in Grams: 798. . 2013. Paperback. . . . . Books ship from the US and Ireland.

Seller Inventory # V9780300194753

Bibliographic Details

• Title: Against the Profit Motive
• Publisher: Yale University Press
• Publication Date: 2013
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0300194757
• ISBN 13: 9780300194753
• Binding: Soft cover
• Condition: New

About this title

Synopsis

In America today a public official's lawful income consists of a salary. But until a century ago the law frequently provided for officials to make money on a profit-seeking basis. Prosecutors won a fee for each defendant convicted. Tax collectors received a percentage of each evasion uncovered. Naval officers took a reward for each ship sunk. Numerous other officers were likewise paid for "performance." This book is the first to document the American government's for-profit past to discover how profit-seeking defined officialdom's relationship to the citizenry and to explain how lawmakers--by ultimately banishing the profit motive in favor of the salary--transformed that relationship forever.

About the Author

Nicholas R. Parrillo is associate professor of law at Yale University.