how many antitrust laws are there 
there are three federal antitrust laws in effect today the sherman act the federal trade commission act and the clayton act 1who enforces antitrust laws the federal trade commission ftc and the u s department of justice doj are responsible for making sure that antitrust laws are abided by the ftc mainly focuses on segments of the economy where consumer spending is high while the doj holds sole antitrust jurisdiction in sectors such as telecommunications banks railroads and airlines and has the power to impose criminal sanctions 3the bottom lineantitrust laws regulate the concentration of economic power to prevent companies from price colluding or creating monopolies proponents of antitrust laws argue that they keep consumer prices lower and foster innovation through increased competition critics say antitrust regulations intervene in the free market and reduce efficiency antitrust laws are enforced by the ftc and doj with the agencies focusing on areas of the economy that receive significant consumer spending such as technology healthcare pharmaceuticals and communications typically antitrust investigations arise from premerger notification filings congressional inquiries or consumer and business correspondence 