United States v. Bell

564 F.2d 953, 1977 U.S. App. LEXIS 11250
CourtTemporary Emergency Court of Appeals
DecidedOctober 11, 1977
DocketNo. 5-24
StatusPublished
Cited by22 cases

This text of 564 F.2d 953 (United States v. Bell) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Temporary Emergency Court of Appeals primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
United States v. Bell, 564 F.2d 953, 1977 U.S. App. LEXIS 11250 (tecoa 1977).

Opinion

ESTES, Judge.

Respondent-appellant, Louis K. Bell, President, Bell Oil Company, appeals from an April 4, 1977 order of the District Court granting enforcement of a Federal Energy Administration (FEA) subpoena served on appellant on July 24, 1975. The subpoena of “The Federal Energy Administrator” was addressed to “Mr. Louis K. Bell, President, d/b/a Bell Oil Company”; was explicitly “issued . . . under authority of Section 206 of the Economic Stabilization Act of 1970, as amended, incorporated by Section 5(a)(1) of the Emergency Petroleum Allocation Act of 1973, as amended, and Section 13(e)(1) of the Federal Energy Administration Act of 1974, and 10 C.F.R. Sections 205.8 and 205.200”;1 was signed by Frederic Johnson, “Regional Administrator”; and bore the seal of the Federal Energy Administration. The Certificate of Service on the reverse of the subpoena also bears the seal of the FEA and certifies to the handing of an “attested copy of the subpoena to the person to whom it was directed.”

The subpoena, which requires both testimony and production of documents, sought cost and pricing data relating to the purchase and sale of petroleum products by Bell Oil Company, a wholesale purchaser-reseller (10 C.F.R. § 211.51), to determine compliance with the mandatory allocation and pricing regulations of the FEA.2

Appellant’s brief states:

“The issues presented for review by the court are:
“1. Whether Bell Oil Company was properly made a party to this action?
“2. Whether the subpoena sought to be enforced was issued for an improper purpose, in bad faith, for the purpose to harass the respondent to penalize respondent for having exercised his constitutional right of free speech and his right to petition the Government for redress of [957]*957grievances as guaranteed by the First Amendment, to obtain records already in possession of the Federal Energy Administration and to obtain records pertaining to the retailing of gasoline?
“3. Whether 10 C.F.R. §§ 205.200, 205.202 and 210.92 are valid?” (Br. 1)

Plaintiff-appellees’ brief states the issue as follows:

“1. Did the District Court err in finding that a subpoena issued by the Federal Energy Administration (FEA) requiring appellant Louis K. Bell to produce records of Bell Oil Company necessary for a full price audit of that Company by the FEA should be judicially enforced in that it called for documents relevant to the jurisdiction of the FEA, was reasonable in scope and as to place and time of production, was not issued solely for harassment, did not constitute an unreasonable search and seizure, would not deprive appellant of property without due process of law, and called for documents the production of which would not appreciably interfere with the operation of appellant’s business?” (Br. 1, 2)

Appellant argues that Bell Oil Company (also herein referred to as Bell Oil) is not a proper party to this action; that the subpoena was issued for an improper purpose, in bad faith for the purpose of harassment; and that the regulations governing the FEA investigations, 10 C.F.R. §§ 205.200, 205.202, and 210.92, are invalid. Appellant requests this court to reverse the order and judgment of the trial court enforcing the subpoena, to “dismiss Bell Oil Company as a party to this action, to quash enforcement of the subpoena,” and “to rule that the cited regulations are invalid.” [Appellant’s Brief (Apt.'s Brf.) 19-20]

In the early part of 1974, the FEA predecessor, the FEO, received complaints regarding appellant’s compliance with the pricing and allocation regulations. On April 16, 1974, IRS Agent Whaley

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
564 F.2d 953, 1977 U.S. App. LEXIS 11250, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/united-states-v-bell-tecoa-1977.