The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1916-01-10
AttOrney-General Defines
L. s. Attitude Under
Antitrust Laws.
WILL BE LENIENT TO
INNOCENT OFFENDERS

The statement was called forth by the
uncertainty which has existed In the
minds OF business men by reason OF The
the relationship 10 be established be-
tween the Department Of Justice and the
new Federal Trade Commission an points
when their jurisdiction seemed to over
lap and also as TO tho probable attitude
Of the Department of Justice in regard
TO future anti-trust proceedings.
Attorney-General Gregory gives the
assurance that In cases where persons
have entered into a transaction In good
faith believing 1t to be lawful and later
are accused Of o'atins the law. the
Department will not invoke exit eme
penalties" against them. The Attorney
General contends that this has oeen the
policy Of the Department.
Problem Of COOpr rn tiUn.
Mr.. Gregory also outlines in detail
his conception of the way I'm which the
Department Of Justice and the Federal
Trade Comnis sion will cooperate. which
~ matter about winch the business
world ..as been very uncertain ever since
the commission was creared
The Attorneys General seems 10 in
diCate that in cases Yer winch both
the Department and the Federal Trade
commission have Jurisdiction. such as
those arising under the Clayton act, the
Department will await the conclusion OF
t"e commissions proceedings regarding
any matters In which the commssion's S
jurisdiction is first invoked.
Mr.. Gregory's statements were made
in reply TO questions put to him by a
special committee of the national cham
Der, headed by Henry A. Wheeler. vice.
president OF the Union Trust Company
of Chicago. Other members of tn. COM
m,tee are Rush II. Butler of Chicsgo.
Joseph i. Cotton OF New York Alfred
u. Koch ~ Toledo. president OF the Ma
tional Retail Dry Goods Associati ion (: W.
l.. Saunders OF New York. Prof III. n.
Se~eer Of Columbia University. Alex
ander w. Smith Of Atlanta Ga. Guy r.
Tripp OF New York and Dr l. -. White
safe Geulocist NJ West Virginia.
REPORT Of the Committee.
The results Of the committees inter.
view were issued by the national cham.
Der in the following form:
"By way OF introduction the Attorney.
General expressed "A view that much OF
the misunderstanding that exists in some
quarters In relation to the sherman ac'
is due to the fac; that IN the mind,
of many II has come TO be thought OF a,
a statute apart from the general body
OF laws--one by nature unlike othe,
laws. especially as regards the functil
and duty of those charged with its en-
forcement.
This. he pointed out. is not the cas-.
AT all. ON the contrary. the Sherman
ac, Is enforced by the Department q
Justice in the same manner and accord
ing to the same rules of policy az othel
statutes-with the same care and will
neither more nor less rigor Plain o.
intentional violations are proceeded
against vigorously. as under othe
statutes.
"Whesi. as with all statutes. doubtful
cases arise in which there was no in
tent to yiolata the law they are deal
with just as similar cases under otne
statutes are dealt with hiat ls. with
! view tn enforcing strict compliance will
: the law. but without unnece sssa rily stig
/ matizlng or unnecessarily burdening will
! litigation persons who have been honestl,
mistaken as to the law and who stan,
ready To rcc,ify their mistake.
Persistent tsr~presentattOn.
Another cause OF this misunderstood
| ing. said tine Attorney General, is IN
! persistent misrepresentation 20 whicl
| the sherman act has been subjected b,
! propagandists who are opposed to tn
! competitive principle and who seek &
I undermine that principle by attemptint
to create in the public mind misgivLrg
and confusion, both az to the meaning
and as to the manner OF enforcing tn
law embodying 1t.
-Four points were then taken up
| First. the complaint that the law 4
uncertain second. the policy OF the De
| partment OF Justice as regards tn
method of enforcing the law in ad
mlt;edly doubtful cases third, the mean
| adopted by the Department to guar
against unjust prosecutions: fourth tn
policy OF the Department in cases wher
II and the Federal Trade Commissio
are both charged with the enforcement
OF the law.
"ConccrninS the first point the Attor
ney y-General stated that while conceded
there is in the law of restraint OF trad
an area OF doubt in the vast majorit
OF cases II IL not difficult to tell whethe
a proposed transaction Is or is not 1
! violation OF the statute. and the douh
IL certainly no greater than that whic
II accepted as a matter of course in tn
applications OF other laws,
"Such doubt as there II. he statot
will he greatly reduced by decisions 4
the shipping pool case, the anthracit
coal cases the Harvester case, the Stet
case and the United Shoe Machiner
case. which are now pending in tn
Supreme Court.
Policy In Doubtful Cases,
This lei to the question as to TN
policy of the Department as regards tn
method of enforcing the law in thos
cases which are admittedly doubtfu
On that point the Attorney Genera
stated that where men have entered int
a transaction believing In good faIt
that the transaction is a lawful one an
subsequently, upon complaint made, tn
Department reaches the conclusion tina
the transaction was not in accorda nc
with the statute but IL yet satisfied q
the good faith and innocent purpose G
the parties and can see that there wa
ground for the view of the law upo
which they acted, 1t has not been, an
would not he the policy OF the Depar,
ment to invoke extreme penalties aga in,
them.
"In suc, a case the Depa rtment wouI
consider that the Just and approprlat