The 20th century saw a proliferation of professions from the original three:
First, theology;
Second, medicine;
and third, the law.
Religion has recently lost out to ideology.
But law and medicine, and their new 20th century cousins (which are all really just occupations with a sense of entitlement) have lobbied successfully for regulations in order to protect the public interest and ensure ethical behavior.
Or at least that was the rationalization.
Regulatory Bodies in the Accounting Profession –
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