National Association of Recycling Industries, Inc., Plaintiffs v. American Mail Line, Ltd.

This appeal from the dismissal of an antitrust action requires this court to interpret the antitrust exemption contained in section 15 of the Shipping Act of 1916, 46 U.S.C. § 814 (1976). Section 15 immunizes from the antitrust laws conferences of common carriers that engage in collective rate-making, provided that the rate-making is authorized by agreements which the Federal Maritime Commission (FMC) has approved and provided further that all rates have been properly filed with the FMC. Although individual rates require no separate FMC approval to take effect, under § 18(b)(5) of the Shipping Act, the FMC can later disapprove rates that it finds so unreasonably high or low that they are detrimental to United States commerce. 46 U.S.C. § 817 (b)(5) (1976). The principal issue in this case is whether shipping rates that the FMC has not disapproved have antitrust immunity if, as plaintiffs allege, they violate § 18(b)(5).

This action was brought by the National Association of Recycling Industries, Inc. (NARI), a trade association of wastepaper exporters to the Far East, and three of its member firms, against a group of common carriers who are present or former members of the…