Rethinking Major League Baseball’s Antitrust Exemption
30 Journal of Legal Aspects of Sports 18 (2020)
University of Florida Levin College of Law Research Paper Forthcoming
23 Pages Posted: 6 Mar 2020
Date Written: 2020
Abstract
For nearly a century, Major League Baseball (MLB) has enjoyed antitrust immunity. No other sports league or organization is similarly exempt. Shielded by precedent from antitrust prosecution, MLB clubs are free to exploit both monopolistic and monopsonistic power. In this paper, we call for a repeal of MLB’s antitrust exemption. In doing so, we examine some recent antitrust challenges to MLB conduct, the current interest of the Department of Justice and the Federal Trade Commission in labor market issues, the welfare consequences of the exemption, and a policy recommendation for legislative action.
Keywords: Major League Baseball, antitrust exemption, monopoly, monopsony
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