Antitrust laws prohibit anti-competitive behavior (e.g., monopolies) and unfair business practices. There are three main behaviors and practices that the antitrust laws monitor:

• Agreements or practices that restrict free trading and fair competition between business entities.
• Abusive behavior by a monopoly, or anti-competitive practices that tend to lead to such a dominant market position, such as predatory pricing, price gouging, and refusals to deal.
• Mergers and acquisitions of large corporations, including some joint ventures. Transactions that are considered to threaten the competitive process can be prohibited altogether, or approved subject to specified "remedies" designed to enable other businesses to continue competing.

Examples of anti-competitive practices include:

• Price fixing - An agreement between business competitors selling the same product or service regarding its pricing
• Bid rigging - A form of price fixing and market allocation that involves an agreement in which one party of a group of bidders will be designated to win the bid
• Geographic market allocation - An agreement between competitors not to compete within each other's geographic territories.

To prove a criminal violation of the federal antitrust law, known as the Sherman Act, the government must establish four elements: (1) an agreement to concerted action, such as a combination or conspiracy formed by two or more entities; (2) that the agreement unreasonably restrained trade or commerce; (3) the restrained trade or commerce is interstate; and (4) a showing of general intent.

Conviction of an antitrust violation can carry up to 10 years imprisonment. However, jail time can be avoided upon the implementation of negotiated remedies. You need a knowledgeable and well-respected criminal defense attorney to advocate your case in order to attain the best result.