Western States Cattle Company, Tom M. Crowl, Gary D. Dehaan, and Merritt Brown v. United States Department of Agriculture

HEANEY, Senior Circuit Judge.

The petitioners are livestock dealers who have been found by the Department of Agriculture to have fraudulently overcharged their customers in violation of the Packers and Stockyard Act. 7 U.S.C. § 181, et seq. (Act). The judicial officer of that Department affirmed the administrative law judge’s findings on appeal and suspended the petitioners’ registration under the Act. The petitioners were enjoined from dealing in livestock for six months.

We reverse the judicial officer’s judgment. Any violations in this case were not substantial and there is insufficient…