Mountain States Tel. & Tel. Co. v. Jones

267 P.2d 634, 75 Idaho 78, 1954 Ida. LEXIS 196
CourtIdaho Supreme Court
DecidedFebruary 16, 1954
Docket8041
StatusPublished
Cited by9 cases

This text of 267 P.2d 634 (Mountain States Tel. & Tel. Co. v. Jones) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Idaho Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Mountain States Tel. & Tel. Co. v. Jones, 267 P.2d 634, 75 Idaho 78, 1954 Ida. LEXIS 196 (Idaho 1954).

Opinions

GIVENS, Justice.

May 17, 1952 respondent Company, by formal petition, applied to the Public Utilities Commission for approval of increased rates, and for appropriate, pertinent hear[81]*81ings, which commenced September 3, 1952 and continued seriatim until March 24, 1953, whereupon the Commission, by its order of May 13, 1953, denied the increase.

May 15, 1953 respondent Company filed a complaint in the District Court asking for a mandatory injunction permitting respondent to charge such rates, increased to give an additional annual income of $1,097,000 and that appellants be restrained from interfering with such collection. The complaint was accompanied by notice, directed to appellant Commission and the Attorney General and his assistants as attorneys for the Commission, that May 25 at ten o’clock a. m. such temporary injunction would be sought.

At that time respondent, with court permission, amended its complaint alleging it had asked the Commission May 25 for a rehearing in the initial case.

A general demurrer to the complaint was overruled, and appellants forthwith filed an answer traversing the substance of the complaint with affirmative, negating and countering substantive allegations, asserting no increase of rates was justified, needed, or should be allowed.

The transcript of the proceedings, and exhibits, before the Commission were, over appellants’ objection, admitted in evidence. The court instanter made its order and decree, finding with specific reference to the record the rates in effect prior to the application for their increase, if continued, would result in confiscation to respondent and that the rates should be increased as substantially requested by respondent to prevent confiscation and authorized the collection of the increased rates, same to be impounded with the Clerk of the Court under the protection of a $100,000 bond insuring prompt payment by respondent Company of all damages; and refund to entitled users if the increased rates be not ultimately authorized; prohibited appellants from interfering with such collections, but expressly did not interfere with continued hearings and determination by the Commission of ultimate rates.

The complaint, though no model and sketchy, was not vulnerable to the general demurrer, which was, therefore, properly overruled. Rowland v. Kellogg Power & Water Co., 40 Idaho 216, at page 223, 233 P. 869; Staten Island Edison Corp. v. Maltbie, 296 N.Y. 374, 73 N.E.2d 705, at page 706, 8 A.L.R.2d 825; Lowell Gas Co. v. Department of Public Utilities, 324 Mass. 80, 84 N.E.2d 811; Prendergast v. New York Telephone Co., 262 U.S. 43, 43 S.Ct. 466, 469, 67 L.Ed. 853.

Appellants urge respondent has not exhausted administrative remedies prerequisite to its application for this injunction, in that it did not ask the Commission to suspend the rates approved by it. Sections 61— 624 to 61-626 Idaho Code. If the Commission would have suspended its rates, the court herein has done no more. If it would [82]*82not have, it would have been vain and useless to so ask and there is nothing to sug^ gest the Commission would have suspended its rates. -

“Manifestly under such circumstances the injunction should not have been denied merely because application had not been made to the Commission * * (for suspension).” Prendergast v. New York Telephone Co., supra.

Herein, rehearing was asked, granted, and is now pending.

That confiscation was not raised before the Commission is no bar to raising it herein in this equitable proceeding. Baltimore & Ohio R. Co. v. United States, 298 U.S. 349, 56 S.Ct. 797, 80 L.Ed. 1209.

“Assuming that there is a zone of reasonableness within which the Commission is free to fix a rate varying in amount and higher than a confiscatory rate, (cases) the Commission is also free under § 5(a) [15 U.S.C.A. § 717d (a)] to decrease any rate which is not the ‘lowest reasonable rate’ ”. Federal Power Comm. v. Natural Gas Pipeline Co., 315 U.S. 575, 62 S.Ct. 736, 743, 86 L.Ed. 1037.

Joy v. Winstead, 70 Idaho 232, 215 P.2d 291, merely held the District Court had jurisdiction, either in equity or under the Statute, or both, to issue a mandatory injunction pendente lite to prevent confiscation and irreparable damage, until the question of increased rates has been finally determined. That case recognizedffhat inters ini, inability to collect a non-confiscatory rate would result in irreparable damage, because of the impossibility of recoupment. Such are the general concepts. State ex rel. Public Service Comm. v. Marion Circuit Court, 230 Ind. 277, 100 N.E.2d 888, 103 N.E.2d 214. We did not, in any way, outline the procedure or what was necessary to be shown to justify such an injunction. County Transp. Co. v. Maltbie, 189 Misc. 743, 73 N.Y.S.2d 906, at page 908.

Appellants in their praecipe expressly did not ask for the Summons, Sheriff’s return, affidavits of service and minutes of the court. A copy of the Notice that May 25, 1953 at ten o’clock a. m., respondent would apply for a temporary injunction sought herein, accompanies the complaint and the Order and Decree of the Court recites:

“ * * *; that service of Summons and a copy of the Complaint has been had upon each and all of the Defendants named herein; that a copy of a Notice stating that in accordance with the statutes in such case made and provided, Plaintiff would, on May 25, 1953, at ten o’clock A.M., apply to this court for a temporary injunction staying and suspending Commission Order No. 2255, as in said Notice specified, together with a copy of the Summons and Complaint in this action, was duly served on all of the Defendants named [83]*83herein and on all other persons making a personal appearance in the proceedings before the Commission in opposition to Plaintiff’s application for in- ' creases in rates, such service of said ■Notice having been completed at least three days before the time set for this ; hearing for a temporary injunction. The matter is properly before the court at this time for the limited purpose of determining whether Plaintiff is entitled to a temporary injunction pen- ' dente lite, subject to such conditions as the court may impose.”

Therefore, contrary to appellants’ assignments of error, Sections 8-408 and 61-633, Idaho Code, were complied with.

While the State did not proffer any evidence at the hearing, the summary disposition as shown by the record herein, in effect, indicated no additional evidence would be received or considered. This was unduly and prejudicially restrictive. Alabama Public Service Comm. v. Southern Bell Tel. & Tel. Co., 253 Ala. 1, 42 So. 2d 655, at page 667.

Section 61-633, I.C., expressly requires the proceedings before the Commission to be introduced in evidence; therefore, they were properly admitted. Authorities, which we deem pertinent, indicate that in addition

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Mountain States Tel. & Tel. Co. v. Jones
267 P.2d 634 (Idaho Supreme Court, 1954)

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Bluebook (online)
267 P.2d 634, 75 Idaho 78, 1954 Ida. LEXIS 196, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/mountain-states-tel-tel-co-v-jones-idaho-1954.