Davis

INTRODUCTION

This action arises from plaintiff David Davis’s applications to Southern California Edison Company (SCE) to interconnect solar generating systems on property he owned to the SCE electricity distribution system (electricity grid) to generate electricity for use on those properties and to sell to SCE. Davis contends that SCE, in processing his applications, violated SCE’s tariff rule 21 (Rule 21), tariff rule 16 (Rule 16), the California Renewable Energy Small Tariff (CREST) program, and the net energy metering (NEM) program.

SCE filed a demurrer on the ground that California’s Public Utilities Commission (PUC) had exclusive jurisdiction to resolve the dispute and, therefore, the superior court lacked jurisdiction to hear Davis’s claims. At issue on appeal is the potential conflict between Public Utilities Code section 1759, which limits jurisdiction to review an order of the PUC to the Court of Appeal and the Supreme Court, and section 2106, which grants jurisdiction to the superior court to hear actions for damages against a public utility that violates California law. The trial court sustained SCE’s demurrer without leave to amend, entered judgment against…