Antitrust and Trade Regulation laws aim to promote free competition in the marketplace. Agreements or cooperative efforts by two or more entities that affects or restrains competitors is illegal under these laws. The Sherman Act makes illegal any contract, combination, or conspiracy in restraint of trade or commerce and makes monopolies and attempts, combinations, or conspiracies to monopolize illegal. The Clayton Act regulate price discrimination, tying and exclusive dealing contracts, stock acquisition and interlocking directorates.
Fredericksburg is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia located 50 miles south of Washington, D.C. , and 58 miles north of Richmond. As of the 2000 census, the city had a population of 19,279. The Bureau of Economic Analysis combines the city of Fredericksburg with neighboring Spotsylvania County for statistical purposes. It is a part of the Washington Metropolitan Area. Many Fredericksburg-area residents commute to work by car, bus, and rail to Fairfax, Prince William, and Arlington counties, as well as Washington, D.C. This has led to a long-standing debate in the area over whether or not Fredericksburg has become a part of Northern Virginia culturally.