The Limits of Antitrust

Frank Easterbrook, Apr 01, 2005

In this article, Frank Easterbrook sets out the basic components of what has become known as the error-cost framework in antitrust, an approach that has gained influence in recent years. This framework recognizes the possibility that courts will make mistakes in deciding antitrust cases, and that those mistakes will result in false positives (false convictions) and false negatives (false acquittals). Moreover, the error-cost approach focuses attention on the relative costs of false positives and false negatives.