AEI has published a new edition of its compact guide to the antitrust laws. This briskly paced book gives business executives an overview of antitrust plus specific guidelines that can help them stay out of trouble. The Antitrust Laws: A Primer, Fourth Edition (AEI Press) is written by John H. Shenefield, a lawyer, and Irwin M. Stelzer, an economist.  

This indexed, 200-page guide outlines the principal federal antitrust laws and the business conduct that is illegal. It explains how the antitrust statutes, as interpreted by the courts, seek to protect and enhance competition. It examines the enforcement powers and roles of the Justice Department and the Federal Trade Commission.  

The authors offer suggestions for the design of corporate compliance programs that might keep companies from running afoul of the law. They caution that in specific situations, however, it would be prudent to consult an attorney.  

This primer also examines international enforcement in the global marketplace and the way antitrust law has emerged in the European Union--increasingly important since the EU rejected the GE-Honeywell merger. A chapter is devoted to intellectual property protections (patents, copyrights, trademarks)--especially helpful now that we live "in a world in which intellectual capital is rapidly replacing physical capital as the cornerstone of the wealth of nations."  

For the layman, whether business executive or armchair scholar, and for attorneys who practice in other fields and want to brush up on what they learned about antitrust in law school, this primer is an efficient survey. By turns philosophical and practical, it portrays the preservation of competition and the unfettered movement of prices in a free-enterprise economy as essential to the avoidance of centralized economic planning.  

Getting down to the nitty-gritty of antitrust enforcement, the authors explain how the trust-busters pick targets, conduct preliminary investigations, and reach settlements. They give business executives advice on pricing, relations with customers, and mergers and acquisitions--all of which can be troublesome or problem-free, depending on how they are done.  

John H. Shenefield headed the Antitrust Division of the U.S. Department of Justice from 1977 to 1979. He is a senior partner in the Washington law firm of Morgan, Lewis & Bockius. Irwin M. Stelzer is the director of regulatory studies at the Hudson Institute in Washington, a member of the board of the Regulatory Policy Institute in Oxford, and a political and economic columnist for the Sunday Times (London).