Criminal Charges Will Be Brought For Section 2 Violations, The DOJ Warns

The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) has signaled its readiness to criminally prosecute individual executives whose conduct violates Section 2 of the Sherman Act. This section makes it unlawful for any person to "monopolize, or attempt to monopolize, or combine or conspire with any other person or persons, to monopolize any part of the trade or commerce among the several States, or with foreign nations"—in other words, targeting those actions taken to attain or preserve monopoly power. 

Deputy Assistant Attorney General for Criminal Enforcement Richard Powers answered emphatically in the affirmative when asked, during a panel discussion at a conference on white collar crime, whether the Antitrust Division is prepared to bring criminal charges in monopolization cases.