Before the Court En Banc (Justice Parraguirre recused). Opinion by Justice Cherry.
In this appeal, the Court considered whether principles of federal preemption precluded Appellants from asserting a claim for antitrust violations under Nevada’s Unfair Trade Practices Act (UTPA). The district court case arose out of Appellant’s allegation that Respondents conspired with Enron Corporation to drive up the price of natural gas in the Southern Nevada and Southeastern California markets. The district court granted Respondent’s motion to dismiss Appellants’ complaint, on the grounds that Appellants’ claim was preempted by federal law. The Nevada Supreme Court conducted a detailed analysis of the history of federal regulation of the production, transportation, and sale of natural gas. It concluded that although the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) had gradually deregulated certain of those areas in order to increase market competition, it did not intend to open up regulation to the states. In other words, “[f]rom a practical standpoint, if each state intervened in this field with different regulations, the result would be a maelstrom of competing regulations that would hinder FERC’s oversight of the natural gas market.” Accordingly, Appellants’ claim was barred by the doctrine of field preemption. Affirmed. (Patrick J. Murch, Associate in the Las Vegas office of McDonald Carano Wilson).
