Legal Library: Process Enforcement

The FTC uses compulsory process to obtain information for its investigations and studies. “Compulsory process” refers to various types of information or document requests—including but not limited to subpoenas, civil investigative demands, and orders for special reports—where the recipient of the request may be compelled to comply with the request by order of court.

When a process recipient fails to comply satisfactorily with the Commission’s process, the Commission may start process enforcement proceedings to obtain such orders of court. This page collects process enforcement cases and key documents relating to each case from 2008 to the present.