The U.S. Supreme Court is being asked to review a decision this year by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit that revived state law challenges regarding companies that may have fixed natural gas prices during the energy crisis in 2000-2002.

Several claims were filed in state and federal courts beginning in 2005, all of which were consolidated into a multidistrict litigation (MDL) proceeding (In re: Western States Natural Gas Antitrust Litigation et al v. Oneok Inc. et al, No. 11-16786, DC Nos. 2:03-cf-01431-PMP-PAL, 2:06-cv-00233-PMP-PAL).

Natural gas operators have argued that the U.S. Natural Gas Act preempts state law allegations.

A district court entered summary judgment in July 2011, finding that in most of the cases, state law antitrust claims were preempted by the Natural Gas Act. The case reached the Ninth Circuit in San Francisco, which issued its opinion in April (see Daily GPI, April 16).

The Ninth Circuit panel reversed in part and affirmed in part the district court’s orders, granting summary judgment to the plaintiffs.

The panel held that the Natural Gas Act does not preempt the plaintiffs’ state antitrust claims. It also held that the 2003 enactment of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission’s Code of Conduct didn’t affect its conclusion that the Act did not grant the Commission jurisdiction over claims arising from false price reporting and other anti-competitive behavior.