The Federal Trade Commission v. Standard Oil Co., 1957, was a case that revolved around the question of whether an administrative complaint issued by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) could be considered as a "final agency action" and therefore subject to judicial review. The FTC had accused Standard Oil Company of California of violating antitrust laws and initiated proceedings against them. However, before these proceedings were concluded, Standard Oil sought judicial review in federal court arguing that the mere issuance of a complaint by FTC constituted final agency action. The Supreme Court disagreed with this argument stating that an administrative complaint is just accusatory in nature and does not determine rights or obligations nor impose any legal consequences on its own; it merely triggers further procedures leading up to potential enforcement actions which can then be reviewed legally if necessary. Therefore, such complaints are not 'final' actions subject to immediate judicial review under Administrative Procedure Act.

In the dissenting opinion for Federal Trade Commission v. Standard Oil Co., Justice Harlan argued that the majority's decision to allow an administrative complaint by the FTC to be considered a "final agency action" was incorrect and could potentially lead to unnecessary judicial interference in ongoing administrative proceedings. He contended that such complaints are merely preliminary steps, not final actions, and should not be subject to immediate judicial review. According to him, allowing courts to intervene at this stage would disrupt the proper functioning of agencies like FTC which rely on their ability to investigate potential violations without premature court involvement. Furthermore, he expressed concern about burdening courts with cases where no definitive or impactful agency action has yet occurred.