Every year the FTC brings hundreds of cases against individuals and companies for violating consumer protection and competition laws that the agency enforces. These cases can involve fraud, scams, identity theft, false advertising, privacy violations, anti-competitive behavior and more. The Legal Library has detailed information about cases we have brought in federal court or through our internal administrative process, called an adjudicative proceeding.
Chierico, Michael; Teri Chierico, American Business Supplies, Inc., et al.
Fidelity National Financial, Inc.
A consent order settled charges that Fidelity’s acquisition of Chicago Title Corporation would reduce competition for title information services in San Luis Obispo, Tehama, Napa, Merced, Yolo, and San Benito, California. The order requires the divestiture of title plants in each of the six areas.
Wisconsin Chiropractic Association, The, and Russell A. Leonard, In the Matter of
The Wisconsin Chiropractic Association and its executive director, Russell A. Leonard, settled charges that they conspired to fix the prices for chiropractic goods and services and to boycott third party payers in an attempt to obtain higher reimbursement rates for services and contracts in the La Crosse, Wisconsin area.
AST Nutritional Concepts & Research, Inc., et al.
SNIA S.p.A, In the Matter of
Final order settles charges that Sorin Biomedica S.p.A.'s acquisition of COBE Cardiovascular, Inc. would eliminate competition in the United states market for research, development, manufacture and sale of heart-lung machines. The order permits the acquisition and requires the divestiture of COBE's heart-lung machine business to Baxter Healthcare Corporation
CMS Energy Corporation
Consent order requires Consumer Energy, a CMS subsidiary, to "loan" natural gas from its own system to shippers on third-party pipelines if the interconnection capacity with competing pipelines falls below historical levels settling charges that its acquisition of two natural gas pipelines, Panhandle Eastern Pipeline and Trunkline Pipeline, from Duke Energy Company, could reduce competition and increase consumer prices for natural gas and electricity in 54 counties in Michigan.
Zeneca Group PL
Consent order, resolving antitrust concerns relating to Zeneca's merger with Astra AB requires the divestiture of all assets relating to levobupivacaine, a long-acting local anesthetic. The assets were sold to Chiroscience Group plc, the developer of levobupivacaine.
Woolrich, Inc.
Abercrombie & Fitch, Inc.
Statement on The Subcommittee on Telecommunications, Trade and Consumer Protection
Urological Stone Surgeons, Inc.; Stone Centers of America, L.L.C.; Urological Services, Ltd.; Donald M. Norris, M.D.; and Marc A. Rubenstein, M.D
Consent order settles allegations that Urological Stone Surgeons, Parkside Kidney Stone Centers, Urological Services. Ltd and two physicians engaged in a price-fixing conspiracy to raise the price for professional urologist services for lithotripsy procedures in the Chicago metropolitan area. The complaint alleges that the parties agreed to use a common billing agent, established a uniform fee for lithotripsy services, prepared and distributed fee schedules, and negotiated contracts with third party payers on behalf of all urologists using the Parkside facility. The consent order prohibits such practices in the future and requires the parties to notify the Commission at least 45 days before forming or participating in an integrated joint venture to provide lithotripsy professional services.
Butterworth Health Corporation and Blodgett Memorial Medical Center
The Commission authorized staff to file a motion for a preliminary injunction to block the proposed merger of the two largest hospitals in Grand Rapids, Michigan, Blodgen and Butterworth Hospital, on grounds that the merger would substantially reduce competition for acute-care inpatient hospital services in the area The complaint was filed January 23,1996 in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Michigan (Southern Division). On September 26,1996, the court denied the Commission's request for an injunction. The Commission dismissed its administrative complaint after the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit upheld the district court's decision.
Cadence Design Systems, Inc.
Cadence agreed to settle charges that its acquisition of Cooper & Chyan Technology, Inc. would reduce competition for "routing" software used to automate the design of integrated circuits or microchips. According to the complaint, the merger would reduce Cadence's incentives to permit competing suppliers of routing tools to obtain access to its layout environments resulting in less innovation, higher prices, and reduced services. To ensure that independent software developers of commercial routing tools continue to compete with Cooper & Chyan's technology, the consent order requires Cadence to allow the developers to participate in Cadence's software interface programs.