Enacted in July 1890, the Sherman Antitrust Act became the first law to control the monopolistic activities of business. Named after Senator John Sherman, the act declared illegal any combination or contract in restraint of interstate trade or commerce. The act authorized the federal government to dissolve any trusts that violated the law. The act also gave federal circuit courts the authority to prevent and restrain violators of the law. The act did not clearly define combination, trust, or restraint. It was unclear if the act applied only to business combinations, or to labor unions and railroads as well. For many years, the Supreme Court used the act against smaller companies and labor unions. President Theodore Roosevelt began to use the law to break up what he considered “bad trusts.” He used the act to control railroad, oil, beef, and other monopolies. The next president, William Howard Taft, initiated even more antitrust suits.
