Legal Library: Cases and Proceedings

In October 2014, the FTC charged Gerber Products Co. with deceptively advertising that feeding its Good Start Gentle formula to infants with a family history of allergies prevents or reduces the risk that they will develop allergies. The FTC also alleged that Gerber falsely advertised Good Start Gentle’s health claims as FDA-approved. The stipulated court order announced today, which the court has entered as final, settles the FTC’s charges and prohibits Gerber from similar conduct in the future.

The FTC issued an administrative complaint and authorized a federal court action to block Sanford Health's proposed acquisition of Mid Dakota Clinic, alleging that the deal would vioated antitrust law by significantly reducing competition for adult primary care physician services, pediatric services, obstetrics and gynecology services, and general surgery physician services in the greater Bismarck and Mandan metropolitan area. The FTC, jointly with the Office of the Attorney General of North Dakota, filed a complaint in federal district court seeking a temporary restraining order and preliminary injunction to stop the deal and maintain the status quo pending an administrative trial on the merits. According to the complaint, Sanford and Mid Dakota are each other's closest rivals in the four-county Bismarck-Mandan region of North Dakota, and the merger would create a group of physicians with at least 75 to 85 percent share in the provision of adult primary care physician services, pediatric services, obstetrics and gynecology services. On July 9, 2019, after Sanford abandoned its acquisition of Mid Dakota Clinic, the Commission announced that it voted 5-0 to dismiss the case.

Payment processor Allied Wallet, its CEO and owner Ahmad ("Andy") Khawaja, and two other officers, Mohammad ("Moe") Diab and Amy Rountree, have agreed to settle Federal Trade Commission charges that they assisted numerous scams by knowingly processing fraudulent transactions to consumers' accounts.

The Federal Trade Commission mailed 1,177 checks totaling more than $380,000 to people who paid for purported business coaching services that were marketed as a way to help them earn thousands of dollars a month.

D-Link Systems, Inc., agreed to implement a comprehensive software security program in order to settle Federal Trade Commission allegations over misrepresentations that the company took reasonable steps to secure its wireless routers and Internet-connected cameras. 

James V. Grago, Jr. online rewards website ClixSense.com settled allegations from the Fewill be required to implement a comprehensive information security program before collecting personal information as part of a final settlement with the Federal Trade Commission related to allegations that he failed to take reasonable steps to protect personal data.

Announced in June 2019 as part of a crackdown on illegal robocalls against operations around the country responsible for more than one billion calls, this proposed court order permanently bans Nicholas and Nicole Long from calling phone numbers listed on the DNC Registry and from robocalling. It also prohibits Media Mix 365 from calling phone numbers listed on the DNC Registry unless it has the express, written agreement of the recipient to receive such calls or has an established business relationship with the recipient. According to the FTC’s complaint against Media Mix 365, the defendants made illegal calls to develop leads for home solar energy companies.

Announced in June 2019 as part of a crackdown on illegal robocalls against operations around the country responsible for more than one billion calls, the FTC’s complaint against Derek Jason Bartoli alleges the Florida-based defendant has been an active participant in the illegal telemarketing industry for several years, serving as the “dialer,” “information technology (IT) guy,” and at times the seller for various telemarketing companies, including companies that the FTC and other law enforcement agencies have sued. He provided services in his own name and in the names of Phoenix Innovative Solutions LLC, Marketing Consultation Solutions LLC, and KimRain Marketing LLC.

Canon Inc. and Toshiba Corporation have agreed to settle Federal Trade Commission charges that the companies violated the premerger notification and waiting period requirements of the Hart-Scott-Rodino Act, or HSR Act, when Canon acquired Toshiba Medical Systems Corporation from Toshiba in 2016.