A Federal Appeals Court has upheld a lower court ruling in support of Tulsa-based Williams Cos. which was accused of engaging in illegal natural gas price-setting practices 16 years ago in Kansas.
The 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals issued its ruling in a lawsuit brought by then-known Farmland Industries which accused Williams of violating the Kansas Restraint of Trade Act. Farmland claimed Williams did so by engaging in anti-competitive conduct by conspiring to manipulate the price of natural gas.
Farmland’s 2005 lawsuit was based on a Kansas statute that was repealed in 2013 but at the time of the filing of the legal action allowed anyone injured or damaged by any such arrangement to sue and recover losses.
The suit alleged Williams distorted and artificially inflated the price Farmland paid for natural gas. Williams appealed and the case was moved to federal court and eventually transferred to the U.S. District Court for the District of Nevada where it was consolidated with multi-district litigation addressing similar claims made by other plaintiffs. In 2019, the matter was returned to the Kansas federal courts.
The 10th Circuit Court ruling said the repeal of the Kansas statute in question affects Farmland’s right to recover full consideration damages.
The appeals court upheld the district court order but for different reasons and also ruled the repeal of the Kansas statute applied retroactively in the case.
Click here to read opinion on Justia