Summary of Current Policies 2
Summary of Current Policies 2
The effectiveness of antitrust legislation also depends on its selective enforcement by the administration in power. It is the Department of Justice, headed by the Attorney General, who decides when to prosecute corporations for antitrust violations. The Attorney General being a member of the cabinet, it is ultimately the president who decides the level of vigor with which the laws are upheld.
The prosecutorial resources available to the DOJ and FTC also have a major effect on the enforcement of antitrust laws. For example, in 1999 the FTC declined to challenge the merger of CompUSA & Computer City, two computer superstores, despite their recent success in the Staples/Office Depot merger. They won a preliminary injunction in the case, which dealt with the related market of office superstores. A former staff member cited the FTC workload as a possible reason.