Antitrust Legislation
Antitrust Legislation
Sherman
Antitrust Act (1890)
This is the first and most basic of our nation’s antitrust acts, and was passed in large part because conservative Republican senators who opposed the bill passed it in exchange for the passage of the McKinley Tariff.
The act had two important provisions. The first made every contract or conspiracy to restrain trade in interstate and foreign commerce illegal. The second made it illegal for any person to monopolize, or attempt to, or conspire with others to, monopolize any part of interstate and foreign commerce or trade.
Originally, conviction under the Sherman Act was a misdemeanor, and violators were subject to a maximum $50,000 fine and up to a year in prison, plus the possible breakup of the offending trust. Over time, the penalty has been made a felony, punishable by up to a $1,000,000 fine and up to three years in prison.