Opinion ID: 158801
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Tenth Circuit Authority

Text: The Tenth Circuit has carefully avoided encroaching on the exclusive jurisdiction of the Federal Circuit and its predecessor, TECA. In Mobil Oil Corp. v. United States Dep’t of Energy, 983 F.2d 172 (10th Cir. 1992), this court found that a dispute over moneys claimed by DOE in restitution proceedings against an -9- oil company involved issues arising under the ESA and EPAA and required interpretation of the ESA and EPAA, and was therefore subject to TECA’s exclusive jurisdiction. See id. at 175-76. The court found that the issue of liability for restitution was “intertwined with the ESA and EPAA,” and therefore could not properly be removed from TECA’s domain. Id. at 176. The court also noted that “[a]nother Tenth Circuit decision recognizes TECA’s jurisdiction when interpretation of price ceilings regulations imposed by the ESA and EPAA cause a contract dispute between the parties.” Id. (citing Mountain Fuel Supply Co. v. Johnson, 586 F.2d 1375 (10th Cir. 1978), cert. denied, 441 U.S. 952 (1979)). The Tenth Circuit has never exercised jurisdiction over a disputed issue arising under the FSA. Appellants argue that our decision in In re Seneca Oil, 906 F.2d 1445 (10th Cir. 1990), points in favor of jurisdiction over the present case. This argument is incorrect. In Seneca Oil, the court held that where ESA/EPAA issues are merely a backdrop to an independent claim, jurisdiction may obtain. “This appeal,” the court wrote, “is not from an action to enforce DOE regulations or to obtain an order of restitution; rather it is from a decision regarding the priority of the restitution claim in bankruptcy.” Id. at 1454. Moreover, the court was careful to note that TECA’s exclusive jurisdiction with respect to the ESA and EPAA is not to be narrowly construed: “Thus, the phrase ‘arising under’ is interpreted more - 10 - expansively for purposes of TECA’s jurisdiction than it is for purposes of the federal question jurisdiction of the district courts. For example, unlike federal question jurisdiction, the TECA’s jurisdiction can be created by defenses that raise ESA/EPAA issues.” Id. at 1454 n.1 (emphasis added). In sum, only where these statutes and their regulations are mere background will this court exercise jurisdiction. The question remains, therefore, whether appeals relating to the FSA arise under the ESA and EPAA, or whether those statutes merely provide a backdrop for independent claims. In the absence of Tenth Circuit precedent speaking directly to this issue, we find it useful to seek guidance from the Federal Circuit’s extensive dealings with the FSA. As a preliminary matter, we note that the Federal Circuit expressly held “that the TECA precedent and practice on jurisdictional matters shall continue to apply to cases that reach the Federal Circuit by virtue of succession to the TECA.” Texas American Oil Corp. v. United States Department of Energy, 44 F.3d 1557, 1564 (Fed. Cir. 1995). Accordingly, we look to both Federal Circuit and TECA authority in making this inquiry. Such a review reveals that appellate jurisdiction over FSA disputes is exclusively vested in the Federal Circuit. In In re Dep’t of Energy Stripper Well Exemption Litigation, 864 F.2d 796 (Temp. Emer. Ct. App. 1988), the court held that “the case before the district court of Kansas, No. 10-76 [MDL 378 Stripper - 11 - Well Litigation] seeking interpretation of the Final Settlement Agreement to resolve a dispute between two signatories to that Agreement, [is] a cause of action arising out of federal law, specifically out of the laws and regulations concerning the Economic Stabilization Act.” Id. at 799. Given the plain logic of this conclusion, as well as the experience and expertise of the Federal Circuit in interpreting the FSA, we hold that if a controversy presents an issue of interpretation of the FSA, 28 U.S.C. § 1295(a)(11) grants exclusive appellate jurisdiction to the Federal Circuit. We also note that the exclusive jurisdiction of the Federal Circuit obtains where a party raises an ESA/EPAA issue as a defense. See In re Seneca Oil, 906 F.2d at 1454 n.11 (“[T]he TECA’s jurisdiction can be created by defenses that raise ESA/EPAA issues.”); Texas American Oil Corp. v. United States Dep’t of Energy, 44 F.3d 1557, 1563 (Fed Cir. 1995) (“The TECA has exercised jurisdiction of any EPAA/ESA issue whether presented by complaint, as a defense, or as a counterclaim.); Phoenix Petroleum Co. v. United States Fed’l Energy Regulatory Comm’n 95 F.3d 1555, 1563 (Fed. Cir. 1996). It follows from the above discussion that where a party raises the FSA as a defense, the claim “arises under” the ESA and EPAA and therefore vests exclusive jurisdiction in the Federal Circuit. - 12 -