In 1978,Frieda Stayel Opened a Donut Shop in the Town

Essay

In 1978,Frieda Stayel opened a donut shop in the town of Fort Garth,Indiana.Her shop,called "Stayel Donuts," was the first of its kind in the community.Over the years,Stayel Donuts acquired a wide following,not only in Fort Garth but also throughout Indiana and even in surrounding states.Persons traveling through Indiana on their way to another state often would go out of their way to stop at Stayel Donuts because of what they had heard about the high quality of the baked goods sold there.Various competing donut shops opened in Fort Garth and in nearby communities during the years following 1978,but all had failed to acquire enough of a following to enable them to stay in business for very long.As of mid-2003,approximately 95 percent of the donuts sold in Fort Garth were from Stayel Donuts.The latest of Stayel's competitors whose business failed was Duane Duncan,the former operator of "Duncan Donuts." Duncan's attorney has advised him that Stayel has a monopoly on the donut business and that Duncan therefore has a good antitrust claim against Stayel under Section 2 of the Sherman Act? Is the attorney's advice legally sound? Why or why not?