The Federal Trade Commission on Tuesday unanimously rejected — for now — a petition from former Pioneer Natural Resources CEO Scott Sheffield that sought to overturn a consent decree that barred him from joining the board of Exxon Mobil.
But the commission said it will consider his arguments under a different process, keeping open the possibility that it will alter the 3-2 decision that barred him from serving on the board.
Background: The FTC last year alleged that Sheffield tried to collude with other companies and OPEC on oil prices, something Sheffield denies. Sheffield was not allowed to join Exxon’s board as part of the commission’s approval of the oil giant’s acquisition of Pioneer.
Sheffield in March petitioned the FTC to overturn that decision, arguing that relying on his statements about the oil business to justify the ban was “a frontal assault on Mr. Sheffield’s constitutionally protected activities.”
