Standard Oil Company of California v. Arizona, California, Florida, Oregon, and Washington

In this antitrust suit, five states allege that major oil companies have conspired to fix the prices of refined petroleum products. The issue to be resolved on this interlocutory appeal is whether the states are entitled to a jury trial of legal claims. The district court held that the states are entitled to a jury. We affirm.

I. FACTS

Arizona, California, Florida, Oregon, and Washington brought separate actions charging major oil companies with conspiring to fix prices of refined petroleum products. The states brought suit in their proprietary capacities, as class representafives, and as parens patriae. The actions were transferred to the Central District of California for coordinated pretrial proceedings under 28 U.S.C. § 1407 (1982).

The states demanded a jury trial of the legal issues in their antitrust actions. The oil companies moved to strike the jury demand, arguing that the Seventh Amendment does not guarantee the right of jury trial to a state government. The district court held that the states are entitled to a jury trial of legal issues and certified the issue for immediate appeal under 28 U.S.C. § 1292 (b) (1982). Thirty-four states collaborated on an amicus curiae…