What was the Sherman Antitrust Act?

Answer 1

The Sherman Act (1890) authorized the federal government to institute proceedings against trusts in order to dissolve them, but Supreme Court rulings prevented federal authorities from using the act for some years.

The aim of the "Antitrust Act" was to prevent and to break up large groups of corporations (trusts) that monopolized an area of commerce, and thereby controlled the prices and operations of an industry (such as railroads, steel, or oil). Trusts eliminated the competition that would normally act to keep prices at a free market level.

During his term (1901-1909) President Theodore Roosevelt became known as the "trust-buster" for using the Sherman Act to prevent monopolies and business cartels that served to inhibit free enterprise in the US.

Answer 2

The Sherman Anti-Trust Act of 1890 was the first measure passed by the U.S. Congress to prohibit trusts or business activities that federal government regulators deem to be anticompetitive. It also requires the federal government to investigate and pursue trusts (monopolies).