Which law was designed to break up monopolies and promote competition in the United States?

• A. Clayton Antitrust Act
• B. Sherman Antitrust Act
• C. Interstate Commerce Act
• D. Wagner Act

Answer: (B)

The main idea here is using federal law to curb monopolies and promote competition by busting trusts. The Sherman Antitrust Act, enacted in 1890, was the first broad federal effort to do this. It makes illegal any contract, combination, or conspiracy in restraint of trade or commerce and targets attempts to monopolize, giving the government power to challenge and dissolve trusts that hold excessive market power. This established the foundational framework for trust-busting and normative limits on how large firms could dominate a market.

The other laws address related but different aims. The Interstate Commerce Act focused on regulating railroad rates and practices rather than broadly breaking up monopolies. The Clayton Antitrust Act, later, tightened and clarified antitrust rules by targeting specific risky mergers and practices that lessen competition. The Wagner Act deals with labor relations and workers’ rights, not market concentration. So the act designed to break up monopolies and promote competition is the Sherman Antitrust Act.