Powerex Corp. v. Superior Court
Powerex Corp., a Canadian marketer of wholesale energy products and services, petitions for a writ of mandate to compel the superior court to sustain its demurrer to the complaint filed by the California Department of Water Resources (DWR), in which DWR seeks a declaration that its energy contracts with Powerex are void ab initio under principles of state contract law. In its view, the Federal Power Act (the FPA) (16 U.S.C. 791a et seq.) completely preempts DWRs claims, which are within the exclusive jurisdiction of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC).
Powerex contends that instead of relegating it to its remedy by appeal from the judgment after trial, Court should grant Powerexs petition for writ of mandate because it presents an important issue of subject matter jurisdiction and prevent a needless and expensive trial. For the reasons that follow, Court deny the petition.
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