What was the first US Federal statute to limit cartels and monopolies, passed in 1890, that still forms the basis for most antitrust litigation by the United States federal government?
History of monopoly History of monopoly The history of monopoly pertains to the historical tendency of a successful commercial enterprise to dominate an industry. The practice started during Advanced Industrialization with such companies as Standard Oil and the Carnegie Steel Company. The Sherman Antitrust Act was the first Federal statute to limit cartels and monopolies, and today still forms the basis for most antitrust litigation by the United States federal government. Recently, companies such as Microsoft have been accused by the U.S. Department of Justice of the monopolistic practice of Embrace, extend and extinguish. In addition, ExxonMobil and several other corporations have been
United States antitrust law of Justice and the Federal Trade Commission, the governments of states, and private parties. Public enforcement of antitrust laws is seen as important, given the cost, complexity and daunting task for private parties to bring litigation, particularly against large corporations. The federal government, via both the Antitrust Division of the United States Department of Justice and the Federal Trade Commission, can bring civil lawsuits enforcing the laws. The United States Department of Justice alone may bring criminal antitrust suits under federal antitrust laws. Perhaps the most famous antitrust enforcement actions brought by the federal government were the break-up of AT&T's