SUPERIOR Court Associate Judge Lillian A. Tenorio has denied the Commonwealth Utilities Corporation’s motion to dismiss the lawsuit filed by Coca-Cola Beverage Company Micronesia over an 11-year-old billing dispute.
Coca-Cola received a bill from CUC on or about July 9, 2013, that was higher than previous CUC billings Coca-Cola received. Coca-Cola initiated a formal billing dispute on July 16, 2013.
Court documents obtained by Variety did not mention the billing amount.
Over 10 years later, CUC held a two-day hearing in Oct. 2023, and CUC’s hearing officer issued an adjudication order on Nov. 20, 2023.
The administrative order found that CUC’s billings were accurate and rejected Coca-Cola’s arguments that they were not, as well as other defenses regarding CUC’s delay in seeking adjustments to its billings.
The CUC board of directors affirmed the administrative order in its Jan. 25, 2024, meeting. CUC’s counsel informed Coca-Cola of the board’s decision on Jan. 29, 2024.
On Feb. 26, 2024, Coca-Cola filed a petition for judicial review of the administrative order.
CUC then filed a motion to dismiss for lack of subject matter jurisdiction and failure to state a claim upon which relief may be granted. CUC did not dispute the timeliness of the filing of the petition or that administrative remedies had been exhausted.
Judge Tenorio, in her order, said, “The court has jurisdiction to hear Coca-Cola’s appeal even though it did not appeal CUC’s administrative order to the CPUC,” referring to Commonwealth Public Utilities Commission.
“The circumstances of this case warrant the application of the undue prejudice exception to the exhaustion doctrine,” the judge said. She noted the “long delay by CUC to conduct a hearing and issue a decision on the dispute, and there being no definite timeframe specified by statute for CPUC to timely address the appeal.”
Coca-Cola, she added, “was not required to exhaust its administrative remedies before CPUC and could proceed directly to court for judicial review. Further, none of the form and filing flaws that CUC raises in its motion warrants dismissal with prejudice,” she said.
“Admittedly, the filing of the initial documents to effectuate appeal of the administrative decision to obtain jurisdiction of the Superior Court was less than perfect,” the judge said.
“Petitioner’s counsel is advised to notice the requirements of the Rules of Procedure for Administrative Appeals in effect since 2010. Late filings should be acknowledged and leave of court should be sought prior to filing,” she added
Although late, the judge said the filings and service on the Office of the Attorney General “comply with Rule 2(f) as the requisite initial documents have already been filed.”
Judge Tenorio also ordered CUC to file a written notice/report on the status of the certification of records, including all necessary transcripts and exhibits to be filed with the court within five days of the issued order.
She said she will also set a briefing schedule with an opening brief from Coca-Cola as the petitioner, followed by CUC’s brief in opposition.
Coca-Cola is represented by attorney Steven Pixley, while CUC is represented by attorney Michael Evangelista.
