Early Section 1 Cases
Contents
Place in the Framework
Early Section 1 cases show how courts first interpreted the Sherman Act's prohibition on contracts, combinations, and conspiracies in restraint of trade.
Core Questions
- Did courts read "restraint of trade" literally or through common-law limits?
- Which early cases pushed toward categorical condemnation?
- Which cases created pressure for a more flexible reasonableness inquiry?
Working Notes
Add notes here on the early Supreme Court decisions and how they framed the problem that the rule of reason later resolved.