Allen Calculators v. National Cash Register Co

• Decision Date: 01 May 1944
• Docket Number: No. 592,592
• Citation: 322 U.S. 137,88 L.Ed. 1188,64 S.Ct. 905
• Parties: ALLEN CALCULATORS, Inc., v. NATIONAL CASH REGISTER CO. et al
• Court: U.S. Supreme Court

322 U.S. 137

64 S.Ct. 905

88 L.Ed. 1188

ALLEN CALCULATORS, Inc.,

v NATIONAL CASH REGISTER CO. et al.

No. 592.

Argued and Submitted March 28, 1944.

Decided May 1, 1944.

Rehearing Denied May 29, 1944.

See 322 U.S. 771, 64 S.Ct. 1257.

Appeal from the District Court of the United States for the Southern District of Ohio.

Mr. Murray Seasongood, of Cincinnati, Ohio, for appellant.

Mr. Hugh McD. Ritchey, of Cincinnati, Ohio, for appellee National Cash Register Co.

Messrs. Chas. Fahy, Sol. Gen., of Washington, D.C., Wendell Berge, Asst. Atty. Gen., and Charles H. Weston, Elliott H. Moyer, and Robert L. Stern, all of Washington, D.C., for the United States.

Mr. Justice ROBERTS delivered the opinion of the Court.

By a decree, entered February 1, 1916, in a suit by the United States against National Cash Register Company, the latter was restrained, pursuant to the antitrust statutes, from acquiring ownership or control of the business or plant of a competitor manufacturing or selling cash registers or other registering devices. The injunction, however, provided that, in case National should desire such acquisition, 'a petition may be presented to this Court stating the reasons therefor, and if the Court upon investigation into all the circumstances of the case and after notice of not less than sixty days to the Attorney General shall determine that such business or patents or plant so desired to be ac- quired will supplement the plant, patents, machines, or facilities of the defendant corporation and that the acquisition thereof is desired for that purpose and will not substantially lessen competition, then jurisdiction is reserved to pass an order permitting the same upon such terms and conditions as may be right.'

National, desiring to acquire stock of Allen-Wales Adding Machine Corporation, petitioned for leave and gave the required notice to the Attorney General. The Government filed an answer opposing the grant. The matter was set for hearing in the District Court November 15, 1943. On that day Allen Calculators, Inc., the appellant, presented a motion for leave to intervene. The United States consented to the proposed intervention; National opposed it. The District Judge granted intervention conditionally and allowed counsel for the appellant to make an opening statement and to take some part in the proceedings. Subsequently, but prior to the closing of the hearing, he ruled that the appellant would not be allowed to intervene. Before making his ruling, he was advised, in answer to his inquiry, that the president of the appellant would be called as a witness by the Government. November 16 he entered a formal order denying intervention.

The issues, which were tried upon evidence submitted by National and by the Government, were whether the purported acquisition would eliminate competition between certain products of National and Allen-Wales, would eliminate potential competition between other products of the two companies, and would, in other respects, be contrary to the purpose of the original decree. The proceeding was adversary throughout.

December 4 the appellant filed its petition for appeal from the order denying intervention. December 7 the District Judge entered findings of fact and an order granting National's petition upon certain conditions which he deemed necessary to insure compliance with the original decree in the suit. Neither party has appealed from that order. December 10 the Judge allowed this appeal with a proviso that allowance should not operate as a stay of the order granting National's petition. The appeal is to this court under the Expediting Act.¹

Rule 24 of the Rules of Civil Procedure² is:

'(a) Intervention of Right. Upon timely application anyone shall be permitted to intervene in an action: (1) When a statute of the United States confers an unconditional right to intervene; or (2) when the representation of the applicant's interest by existing parties is or may be inadequate and the applicant is or may be bound by a judgment in the action; or (3) when the applicant is so situated as to be adversely affected by a distribution or other disposition of property in the custody of the court or of an officer thereof.

'(b) Permissive Intervention. Upon timely application anyone may be permitted to intervene in an action: (1) when a statute of the United States confers a conditional right to intervene; or (2) when an applicant's claim or defense and the main action have a question of law or fact in common. In exercising its discretion the court shall consider whether the intervention will unduly delay or prejudice the adjudication of the rights of the original parties.'

The appellant insists that it was entitled to intervene as of right, but we think that, in the light of the express provisions of clause (a) the contention must be rejected. No statute of the United States confers an unconditional right of intervention, as required by (1). The appellant relies on § 16 of the Clayton Act,³ but that section merely authorizes private parties to sue for relief against threatened damage consequent upon the violation of the antitrust laws. It grants no privilege, much less an unconditional right, to intervene in suits under the Sherman Act brought by the United States. The application did not fall under (2) for the appellant clearly would not be bound by any judgment in the action. Nor had it any interest in the distribution or disposition of property in the custody of the court so as to come under (3).

The appellant relies upon Missouri-Kansas Pipeline Co. v. United States, 312 U.S. 502, 665, 61 S.Ct. 666, 85 L.Ed. 975. That case, however, is to be distinguished. There the applicant on whose behalf intervention was asked was named in the original decree as one who should be heard in respect of...