Note by James A. Jones
Petitioner, respondents, and certain of their employees were indicted by a federal grand jury, each charged with conspiring to fix the price of ready-mix concrete in the New Orleans, Louisiana area in violation of section 1 of the Sherman Act. Petitioner, subsequently named as defendant in a private treble-damage action based upon the same underlying price-fixing conspiracy between it and certain unnamed concrete firms, filed a third-party complaint against respondents, asserting a right of contribution should it be held liable to the private action plaintiff. The district court granted respondents' Rule 12(b)(6) motions to dismiss for failure to state a claim upon which relief could be granted, holding that no right of contribution exists under the federal antitrust laws. The Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit affirmed. The United States Supreme Court granted certiorari in order to resolve a developing conflict in the circuit courts, and held that there is no basis, either in the federal antitrust laws or in federal common law, for allowing federal courts to create a right of contriution among antitrust defendants. Texas Industries, Inc. v. Radcliff Materials, Inc., 451 U.S. 630 (1981).
About the Author
James A. Jones.
Citation
57 Tul. L. Rev. 151 (1982)