5.2 — Antitrust I: The Law — Class Content

Meeting Date

Tuesday, April 18, 2023

Overview

Today we begin our look at the economics of antitrust, which will take several class periods. Today we cover the kinds of antitrust claims and their remedies today, the history of the major antitrust laws (their origins, evolution, interpretation, and some major court cases), as well as a broad history of economic thought on antitrust.

Readings

Recommended Readings:

• Crandall and Winston, 2003, “Does Antitrust Policy Improve Consumer Welfare? Assessing the Evidence”

• Kovacic and Shapiro, 2000, “Antitrust Policy: A Century of Economic and Legal Thinking”

• NPR Planet Money: “Antitrust 1: Standard Oil”

• NPR Planet Money: “Antitrust 2: The Paradox”

• NPR Planet Money: “Antitrust 3: Big Tech”

Slides

Below, you can find the slides in two formats. Clicking the image will bring you to the html version of the slides in a new tab. The lower button will allow you to download a PDF version of the slides.

Tip

You can type h to see a special list of viewing options, and type o for an outline view of all the slides.

I suggest printing the slides beforehand and using them to take additional notes in class (not everything is in the slides)!

Download as PDF