Law and Power
The Sherman Antitrust Act and Its Enforcement in the Petroleum Industry
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 2484476 |
|---|---|
| Authors | James William Coleman (California Polytechnic State University, corresponding author) |
| Year | 1985 |
| Volume | 32 |
| Issue | 3 |
| Pages | 264-274 |
| Publication date | 1985-02-01 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | No |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Social Problems (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0037-7791 • E-ISSN: 1533-8533 |
| Publisher | Oxford University Press (OUP) (PUBLISHER) |
| DOI | 10.2307/800686 |
| OpenAlex | W2110350572 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 7 |
| References cited | 19 |
An increasing number of sociologists agree that a society's legal norms tend to reflect its configuration of power. They differ on whether that power is pluralistically distributed among competing interest groups or concentrated in the hands of the corporate elite. This paper analyzes the struggle that led to the enactment of the Sherman Antitrust Act of 1890, and the attempts at antitrust enforcement in a key ogligopolistic industry-petroleum. Historical data show that passage of the act was indeed a defeat for the corporate elite; but elite interests ultimately prevailed through their domination of the enforcement process. My analysis of big oil's success in protecting its interests shows that private, profitoriented corporations enjoy fundamental structural advantages over both the enforcement bureaucracy and social movements pushing for change
Bureaucracy · Business · Collusion · Economics · Elite · Enforcement · Industrial organization · Law and economics · Law enforcement · Market economy · Monopolization · Monopoly · Petroleum · Petroleum industry · Physics · Political science · Politics · Power (physics) · Chemistry · Elite Sociology and Global Capitalism · Engineering · Environmental Science · Law · Legal Systems and Judicial Processes · Political Influence and Corporate Strategies
Crime and the legal process
The Control of Oil
Antitrust and the Oil Monopoly
Crime and Conflict
A Sociological Analysis of the Law of Vagrancy
A Sociological Analysis of the Law of Vagrancy
Politics, Reform, and Expansion, 1890-1900
Politics, Reform, and Expansion, 1890-1900
Law and Society
The Growth of the American Republic
The Antitrust Laws of the United States of America
Crime and Justice in Society
The Rise of American Civilization
Crime and Justice in Society
Critique of Legal Order
Law as a Weapon in Social Conflict
| Unique citing works | 6 |
|---|---|
| Citations per year | 0,18 |
| Citation span | 1987 - 2026 (40) |
| Citation velocity | current |
| Highly cited | No |
| Citation types | Neutral: 7 |