Refusal of membership in trade association

No. 335. Refusal of membership in trade association. A national trade association asked the Commission if the association might properly refuse membership to a member’s competitor at the member’s insistence. _ The Commission noted that, as a general rule, a trade association may deny membership for failure to meet reasonable qualifications, but may not deny membership to a_ potential member if to do so would unreasonably restrain interstate. or foreign trade or commerce.

Since no: information was submitted as to why a member publisher would. want..to refuse membership to a competitor or as to what the competitive effects of such a refusal ‘would be, the Commission was unable to be more specific with respect to the question than the statement of. the general. rule set forth above. In the absence of such information, the Association would have to make its own determination as to the propriety of any specific denial of membership within the confines of the general rule as it applies to conditions which exist in its industry. Thus, while the Commission could not categorically rule that denial of membership under the conditions described would be illegal, it also could not give its affirmative approval to the proposal because of the factual uncertainties involved. (File No. 693 7078, released April 18, 1969.)