Napa Valley Electric Co. v. Railroad Commission

Citations

• 251 U.S. 366
• 40 S. Ct. 174
• 64 L. Ed. 310
• 1920 U.S. LEXIS 1698

Syllabus

<p>Under § 67 of the Public Utilities Act of California, as construed by the Supreme Court of the State, a petition to that court for a writ of review to bring up proceedings of the Board of Railroad Commissioners in which rates for electric power were fixed in alleged violation of constitutional rights and excess of the Board’s jurisdiction, may be disposed of upon the merits, by an order simply refusing the writ, if the facts are fully stated in the petition, the provisions for issuing such writ and for subsequent decision upon the record from the Board not being mandatory in such cases. P. 370.</p> <p>In a suit brought in the District Court to enjoin enforcement of rates fixed by such Board, it will be presumed that a petition, not in the record, upon which the state Supreme Court refused a writ of review, exhibited the Board’s proceedings and presented the questions which that court was empowered to decide, viz., whether the Board pursued its authority and whether any constitutional right, state or federal, was violated; and the order refusing the writ will be deemed conclusive of such questions, although not accompanied by an opinion of the state court. P. 372.</p> <p>257 Fed. Rep. 197, affirmed.</p>