The long‑running class‑action lawsuit accusing Mobil Oil Mariana Islands and Shell Marianas of fixing gasoline prices will now be handed to a judge from outside the Commonwealth.
Earlier this month, Superior Court Associate Judge Teresa Kim‑Tenorio disqualified Presiding Judge Roberto Naraja — and every judge on the CNMI Superior Court — from hearing the case.
In an order issued Dec. 12, Kim‑Tenorio granted the oil companies’ motions seeking Naraja’s recusal. She ruled that the plaintiffs’ newly expanded class now includes all regular‑gasoline buyers in Saipan dating back to 2005. That means every Superior Court judge, and their immediate families, are potential class members — creating what the court called a disqualifying financial interest.
Kim‑Tenorio wrote that “all judges of the Superior Court of the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands are disqualified from hearing this matter.”
She also rejected the plaintiffs’ argument that the Rule of Necessity should keep Naraja on the case, noting that the CNMI Constitution allows the chief justice to appoint a temporary judge from another jurisdiction. That appointment will now move forward.
The lawsuit was filed in 2010 by five Saipan residents who accused Mobil and Shell of conspiring to keep gasoline prices artificially high. The case was dismissed in 2011, revived by the CNMI Supreme Court in 2012, and has seen multiple judges step aside over the years.
The latest conflict emerged after plaintiffs broadened their class definition in October, removing earlier exclusions and sweeping in nearly every gasoline consumer on Saipan over a 20‑year span. Mobil and Shell argued that this made it impossible for any local judge to remain on the case — and Kim‑Tenorio agreed.
The case will resume once the chief justice appoints a qualified pro tem judge.
