National Ass'n of Letter Car. v. Independent Postal Sys.
Decision Date | 06 December 1972 |
Docket Number | No. 72-1137.,72-1137. |
Citation | 470 F.2d 265 |
Parties | NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF LETTER CARRIERS, AFL-CIO, Plaintiff-Appellee, v. INDEPENDENT POSTAL SYSTEM OF AMERICA, INCORPORATED, and Thomas M. Murray, Individually and as President of Independent Postal System of America, Incorporated, Defendants-Appellants. |
Court | U.S. Court of Appeals — Tenth Circuit |
James van R. Springer, Washington, D. C. (Mozart G. Ratner and Burck Bailey, Oklahoma City, Okl., on the brief), for plaintiff-appellee.
Timothy J. May and David C. Todd, Washington, D. C. (Patton, Blow, Verrill, Brand, Boggs & May, Washington, D. C., on the brief), for defendants-appellants.
Harlington Wood, Jr., Acting Asst. Atty. Gen., William R. Burkett, U. S. Atty., Alan S. Rosenthal and Michael H. Stein, Attys., Department of Justice, for the United States, amicus curiae.
Before LEWIS, Chief Judge, and McWILLIAMS and DOYLE, Circuit Judges.
The parties to this controversy are the National Association of Letter Carriers, AFL-CIO, a national union of city letter carriers, and the Independent Postal System of America, Incorporated, a private corporation, and its president, Thomas M. Murray. The National Association filed a declaratory judgment action seeking injunctive relief against the Independent Postal System and its president. The gist of the complaint was that the defendants proposed to sell their own postage stamps and themselves deliver individually addressed Christmas cards in envelopes bearing those stamps, all of which it was alleged was in violation of the applicable law granting the United States a monopoly in the delivery of "letters." The relief prayed for was an injunction enjoining such action by the defendants.
Upon hearing, the trial court permanently enjoined defendants from selling or offering for sale private postage stamps for use on Christmas cards addressed to a particular person or concern and from delivering the proposed Christmas cards except as permitted by 39 U. S.C. § 601, and the defendants now appeal. For a more detailed statement of the case, see the memorandum opinion of the trial court, appearing as National Association of Letter Carriers, AFL-CIO v. Independent Postal System of America, Incorporated, 336 F.Supp. 804 (W.D.Okl.1971).
The issues to be resolved on appeal are essentially two: (1) Is the Christmas card which the defendants proposed to deliver a "letter" as such is defined by applicable statutes and postal regulations and (2) does the National Association, the plaintiff, have standing to maintain this particular proceeding and, as a corollary thereof, under the statutes relied on does the plaintiff have a right to injunctive relief? We shall consider these matters in that order.
Counsel are in agreement that under 39 U.S.C. § 601 and 18 U.S.C. § 1696, the so-called "private express statutes," the United States has a monopoly on the handling of "letters" through the mails and that the defendants may not deliver "letters," except in conformity with certain conditions set forth in 39 U.S.C. § 601. However, defendants contend that neither of these statutory prohibitions applies to their proposed delivery of Christmas cards, because their "cards" are not "letters." The plaintiff, in turn, contends that the Christmas cards which the defendants propose to deliver are "letters." Let us examine the defendants' proposed operation a bit more closely.
The Independent Postal System of America, a private corporation, began operation in 1968 and by 1971 was functioning in cities throughout the United States. Until the events which gave rise to this litigation, the Postal System had limited its operation to delivery of parcels, newspapers, magazines and unaddressed bulk matter, such as advertising circulars and catalogues. Beginning in late 1971, however, the Postal System initiated a drastic expansion of its operation, announcing to the public that it would sell its own postage stamps and deliver individually addressed printed Christmas cards in unsealed envelopes bearing those stamps in 45 major metropolitan regions or cities. It is this particular operation which the plaintiff seeks to enjoin.
More specifically, the defendants proposed to deliver, through the use of "mailmen" dressed in traditional mailmen's garb, printed Christmas cards for business entities to their customers and associates. The cards would contain no handwriting or typewriting, nor any personal message, and would contain only the usual form of a printed Christmas salutation. The card would be carried in an envelope which would bear the name and address of the recipient, and would be unsealed. The envelope would not bear United States postage, but would bear a 5¢ stamp printed by the defendants. It was the defendants' evidence that they expected to deliver between five and twenty-five million such cards in forty-five cities where they operate. So, as indicated, the precise issue is whether the Christmas card which the defendants proposed to deliver in the manner set forth above is a "letter" within the meaning of the applicable statutes and postal regulations. In our view, the answer to this question is to be found in the statutes and regulations themselves. Reference thereto at this juncture is therefore appropriate.
The so-called private express statutes with which we are here concerned are 18 U.S.C. § 1696 and 39 U.S.C. §§ 601 and 604. The former provides as follows:
Section 601 of 39 U.S.C. provides as follows:
Section 604 of 39 U.S.C. provides as follows:
The codified Regulations of the United States Postal Service provide as follows in 39 C.F.R. Part 152:
"The Postal Service has a monopoly over the transportation of letters for others over post routes. * * *"
An uncodified Regulation1 of the United States Postal Service defines "letters" for the purposes of the postal monopoly as follows:
It was in this general setting that the trial court found that the Christmas card which ...
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