Primary Jurisdiction Doctrine

Primary jurisdiction doctrine enables federal courts to stay its proceedings and defer to administrative discretion exercised by agencies created by Congress.

There is a two-pronged test. Under the first prong, a district court must consider whether referral of the case to an administrative body will promote national uniformity in the field of regulation. Under the second prong, the court must consider whether factual development of the case will benefit from agency expertise.

The "administrative expertise" prong tends to receive greater emphasis.^[1]

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