THE philosophy and practice of Fair Trade price-fixing laws are taking a heavy official beating. Last week the high courts of two states threw out Fair Trade statutes as unconstitutional. In a case involving the sale of Prestone anti-freeze for $2.97 a gallon (instead of the Fair Trade $3.75), the Arkansas Supreme Court ruled that any law that gives a manufacturer the power to bind all retailers to a fixed price because one retailer has signed an agreement deprives the non-signers of "a valuable property right" (to sell at a reduced price) without due process of law. On the same...
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