Priceless

by Lloyd Constantine

Book Overview

Lloyd Constantine began his career in legal services, representing impoverished clients in civil rights and constitutional cases. Decades later, he would make headlines for representing retailers and... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1607144565
• ISBN13: 9781607144564
• Release Date: October 2009
• Publisher: Kaplan Publishing
• Length: 256 Pages
• Weight: 1.14 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.9" x 6.4" x 9.2"

Customer Reviews

Taking on the Hydra

A great read into one of the seminal attacks on the hegemony of Visa, MasterCard and their member banks. Details of the obfuscation, outright deceit, delay tactics and business model legal-engineering of these famous card brands is astounding. C & P established the benchmark precedent for all antitrust actions surrounding the card brands today (C & P did not "kill the beast" only weakened it), making this book a "must read" for anyone in card payments policy and antitrust law. Anyone who still harbors a shred of sympathy for these brands needs to focus on the evidence surrounding public deception to kill more efficient PIN debit (still happening today), conspiracy to restrict access from potential competitors and general distain of antitrust laws needs to read this book. On the down side, Lloyd's views on the how politics played in the growth of Visa and MasterCard are a bit flawed. While he contends Regan/Bush/Bush lax approach to antitrust lead to the growth of the monopoly, he fails to point out that most of the market power growth and restrictive practices occured during the Clinton administration. Sadly, this highlights the fact that NO administration - including Obama, to date - has been willing to take on the banking lobby beyond "show trials".

Fascinating Case

I didn't follow this original case in the news and was shocked by the length and intensity of the anti-trust case against Mastercard and Visa. Reading this book, I felt the lawyers' exhaustion and frustration with this 15 year plus legal action that eventually resulted in a win for Constantine and the American consumer. Priceless details the main points in the case, the lengthy litigation and the eventual outcome. When I was first starting reading this book I was struggling with the legal jargon, but slowly began to understand more about this case and the legal system. It was definitely an interesting read, but be prepared for very technical legal terms. I looked up several words and legal concepts while reading this book to gain a better understanding of the case and legal action. Priceless is not a book I would have picked up to read on my own, but I was glad I received an Advanced Reader's Copy. The book really gave me insight on the true deceptive nature of the credit industry and the major efforts it took to bring down the Visa/Mastercard bank cartel. Not a book for a light, easy read, but definitely worth reading.

Interesting

I was skeptical about this book. I was thinking that I wouldn't enjoy it at all but was surprised when I started reading, it was very interesting! Since I don't pay much attention to the financial problems and news in general because it is always negative, I have never heard about this lawsuit. It was quite interesting to learn about all the ways Visa and Mastercard were able to get more money out of people with fees, and what was eventually done about it.

Constantine leaves it on the field.

A great read for the lay person as well as anyone who works in the legal profession. I was given the book as a gift and I do not know that much about anti-trust law. This book is an inspiring story about the value of hard work & perseverance. It contains many life's lessons which one can practice if they wish to push the boundries of their own lives. It will transcend time and is a must read for those of us who would like to gain insight into todays battles between consumer advocacy groups, preditory credit card companies & the "Bank Cartels". I look forward to reading more Titles from this author.