U.S. Supreme Court FOX FILM CORPORATION v. MULLER, 296 U.S. 207 (1935)

[Page 296 U.S. 207, 211]

matter, does not apply. The construction put upon the contracts did not constitute a preliminary step which simply had the effect of bringing forward for determination the federal question, but was a decision which automatically took the federal question out of the case if otherwise it would be there. The nonfederal question in respect of the construction of the contracts and the federal question in respect of their validity under the Anti-Trust Act were clearly independent of one another. See Allen v. Southern Pacific Railroad Co., 173 U.S. 479, 489-492, 19 S.Ct. 518. The case, in effect, was disposed of before the federal question said to be involved was reached. Chouteau v. Gibson, 111 U.S. 200, 4 S.Ct. 340; Chapman v. Goodnow, 123 U.S. 540, 548, 8 S.Ct. 211. A decision of that question then became unnecessary; and whether it was decided or not, our want of jurisdiction is clear.

Writ dismissed for want of jurisdiction.

The CHIEF JUSTICE took no part in the consideration or decision of this case.