Lorain Journal Co. v. United States

Lorain Journal Co. v. United States
Argued October 17, 1951
Decided December 11, 1951
Full case nameLorain Journal Company, et al v. United States
Citations342 U.S. 143 (more)
72 S. Ct. 181; 96 L. Ed. 162
Case history
PriorInjunction granted, 92 F. Supp. 794 (N.D. Ohio 1950); probable jurisdiction noted, 71 S. Ct. 743 (1951).
Court membership
Chief Justice
Fred M. Vinson
Associate Justices
Hugo Black · Stanley F. Reed
Felix Frankfurter · William O. Douglas
Robert H. Jackson · Harold H. Burton
Tom C. Clark · Sherman Minton
Case opinion
MajorityBurton, joined by unanimous
Laws applied
Sherman Antitrust Act

Lorain Journal Co. v. United States, 342 U.S. 143 (1951), is a decision of the United States Supreme Court[1] that is often cited as an example of a monopolization violation being based on unilateral denial of access to an essential facility although it in fact involved concerted action.[2] When the Lorain Journal monopoly over advertising in the Lorain, Ohio, area was threatened by the establishment of a competing radio station, the newspaper's publisher refused to accept advertising from those who advertised over the radio station and required them to advertise only in the Journal. The purpose of the publisher was to eliminate the competition of the radio station. The Supreme Court held that the publisher had attempted to monopolize trade and commerce in violation of § 2 of the Sherman Antitrust Act and was properly enjoined from continuing its conduct.

  1. ^ Lorain Journal Co. v. United States, 342 U.S. 143 (1951).
  2. ^ See. e.g., Robert Pitofsky, Donna Patterson, and Jonathan Hooks, The Essential Facilities Doctrine Under United States Antitrust Law, 70 Antitrust L.J. 443, 446–47 (2002) (characterizing it as "a unilateral refusal to deal" case). Actually, Lorain Journal involved agreements with reluctantly-acquiescent customers that they would not deal with a competitive radio station, as explained in the Background section.

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