Abstract
Simpson leased a gasoline service station for a twelve-month period from Union Oil Company and was required by the company to sign a consignment agreement. Under the agreement, Union Oil not only retained title to all consigned gasoline until it was sold but also reserved the power to establish the retail price. Simpson sold gasoline below the set price in order to meet local competition, and Union Oil thereupon refused to renew the lease on the ground that Simpson had violated the consignment agreement. Simpson sued for treble damages under section 4 of the Clayton Act on the ground that the consignment-lease agreement was in violation of sections 1 and 2 of the Sherman Act. Union Oil was granted summary judgment by the district court, and this decision was affirmed by the court of appeals. The United States Supreme Court reversed, holding that the consignment-lease agreement was used as a coercive price-fixing device in violation of the Sherman Act.
I. Resale Price Maintenance … A. Refusal to Deal … B. Agency or Consignment Agreement
II. Antitrust Policy
III. Coercive Price Control
IV. Conclusion
Recommended Citation
Thomas B. Allington,
Resale Price Maintenance—Consignment Agreements—Simpson v. Union Oil Co., 377 U.S. 13 (1964),
44 Neb. L. Rev. 635
(1965)
Available at: https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/nlr/vol44/iss3/7