T here are two prevailing (and some would say polemical) visions of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (the" Dodd-Frank Act").'As with most visions, neither of these fully comports with reality. In one vision the Dodd-Frank Act represents a welldesigned and benevolent measure that will remediate the financial regulatory system and enhance the safety and soundness of the US financial system. In the other vision the Dodd-Frank Act represents an ill-conceived and feckless measure that will have the perverse effect of weakening the US financial system and the greater US economy. Under either vision the necessary starting point for analysis must be the individual provisions of the Dodd-Frank

Paul L. Lee, a member of the board of editors of The Banking Law Journal, is a corporate partner at Debevoise & Plimpton LLP, co-chair of the firm's Banking Group, and a member of the firm's Financial Institutions Group. He may be contacted at pllee@ debevoise. com.