Association Participation in Government Standard-Setting—How an Association Can Avoid Antitrust Liability

• Author: Samuel K. Abrams
• DOI: 10.1177/0003603X7301800209
• Published date: 01 June 1973
• Date: 01 June 1973
• Subject Matter: Article

ASSOCIATION PARTICIPATION IN

GOVERNMENT

STANDARD·SEnING-HOW AN ASSOCIAnON

CAN AVOID

ANTITRUST

LlABIUTY

by

SAMUEL

K.

ABRAMS·

First,

I will give you the good news. The United

States

Supreme Court in 1972 made the following statement in

California Motor Transport Co. v. Trucking Unlimited:1

We conclude

that

it

would be destructive of rights

of association and of petition to hold

that

groups with

common interests may not, without violating the anti-

trust

laws, use the channels

and

procedures of

state

and federal agencies and courts to advocate their causes

and points of view respecting resolution of their business

and economic interests vis-a-vis their competitors.s

Now, I will give you the bad news.

In

the next

para-

graph

of 'the Trucking Unlimited case, the Supreme Court

added:

We said, however, in Noerr

that

there may be in-

stances where the alleged conspiracy

"is

amere sham

to cover what is actually nothing more than

an

attempt

to interfere directly with the business relationships of

acompetitor

and

the application of the Sherman Act

would be justified." 8

The Noerr case

referred

to is Eastern Railroad Presi-

dents Conference v. Noerr Motor Freight, Inc.," decided in

• Morison, Murphy, Abrams &Haddock, Washington, D. C.

I92 S. Ct. 609 (1972).

:I Id. at 612.

8Id.

.. 365 U.S. 127.

281