United States · regulation · 16 CFR · 2,158 active provisions
The Federal Trade Commission is an independent administrative agency that was organized in 1915 pursuant to the Federal Trade Commission Act of 1914 (38 Stat. 717, as amended; 15 U.S.C. 41-58). It is responsible for the administration of a variety of statutes that, in general, are designed to promote competition and to…
The principal office of the Commission is in Washington, DC. All communications to the Commission should be addressed to the Federal Trade Commission, 600 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW, Washington, DC 20580, unless otherwise specifically directed. The Commission's Web site address is www.ftc.gov.
Principal and regional offices are open from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m., except on Saturdays, Sundays, and legal holidays.
The Commission exercises enforcement and administrative authority under the Federal Trade Commission Act (15 U.S.C. 41-58), Clayton Act (15 U.S.C. 12-27), and more than 70 other Federal statutes, which are listed at https://www.ftc.gov/enforcement/statutes.
(a) The Commission is authorized to entertain monetary claims against it under three statutes. (1) The Federal Tort Claims Act (28 U.S.C. 2671-2680) provides that the United States will be liable for injury or loss of property or personal injury or death caused by the negligent or wrongful acts or omissions of its empl…
(a) The Commission, under the authority provided by Reorganization Plan No. 4 of 1961 (15 U.S.C. 41 note), may delegate, by published order or rule, certain of its functions to a division of the Commission, an individual Commissioner, an administrative law judge, or an employee or employee board, and retains a discreti…
The Chair of the Commission is designated by the President, and, subject to the general policies of the Commission, is the executive and administrative head of the agency. The Chair presides at meetings of and hearings before the Commission and participates with other Commissioners in all Commission decisions. In rulem…
The Federal Trade Commission includes the following principal units: Office of the Executive Director; Office of the General Counsel; Office of the Secretary; Office of the Inspector General; Office of Administrative Law Judges; Bureau of Competition; Bureau of Consumer Protection; Bureau of Economics; and Office of In…
The Executive Director, under the direction of the Chairman, is the chief operating official who develops and implements management and administrative policies, programs, and directives for the Commission. The Executive Director works closely with the Bureaus on strategic planning and assessing the management and resou…
The General Counsel is the Commission's chief law officer and adviser, who renders necessary legal services to the Commission; represents the Commission in the Federal and State courts, and before administrative agencies in coordination with the Bureaus, in appellate litigation, investigative compulsory process enforce…
The Secretary is the legal custodian of the Commission's seal, property, papers, and records, including legal and public records, and is responsible for the minutes of Commission meetings. The Secretary, or in the Secretary's absence an Acting Secretary, signs Commission orders and official correspondence. In addition,…
The Office of Inspector General (OIG) was established within the Federal Trade Commission in 1989 as required by the Inspector General Act Amendments of 1988 (5 U.S.C. app. 3). The OIG promotes the economy, efficiency, and effectiveness of FTC programs and operations. To this end, the OIG independently conducts audits…
Administrative law judges are officials to whom the Commission, in accordance with law, delegates the initial performance of statutory fact-finding functions and initial rulings on conclusions of law, to be exercised in conformity with Commission decisions and policy directives and with its Rules of Practice.
The Bureau is responsible for enforcing Federal antitrust and trade regulation laws under section 5 of the Federal Trade Commission Act (15 U.S.C. 45), the Clayton Act (15 U.S.C. 12-27), and a number of other special statutes that the Commission is charged with enforcing. The Bureau carries out its responsibilities by…
The Bureau is responsible for enforcing the prohibition against unfair or deceptive acts or practices in section 5 of the Federal Trade Commission Act (15 U.S.C. 45), as well as numerous special statutes that the Commission is charged with enforcing. The Bureau carries out its responsibilities by investigating alleged…
The Bureau aids and advises the Commission concerning the economic aspects of all of its functions, and is responsible for the preparation of various economic reports and surveys. The Bureau provides economic and statistical assistance to the enforcement Bureaus in the investigation and trial of cases.
(a) These offices are investigatory and enforcement arms of the Commission, and have responsibility for investigational, trial, compliance, and consumer educational activities as delegated by the Commission. They are under the general supervision of the Bureaus of Competition and Consumer Protection and clear their act…
The Office of International Affairs (OIA) is responsible for the agency's international antitrust and international consumer protection missions in coordination and consultation with the appropriate Bureaus, including the design and implementation of the Commission's international program. OIA provides support to the B…
(a) Any person, partnership, or corporation may request advice from the Commission with respect to a course of action which the requesting party proposes to pursue. The Commission will consider such requests for advice and inform the requesting party of the Commission's views, where practicable, under the following cir…
(a) Application. The request for advice or interpretation should be submitted in writing (one original and two copies) to the Secretary of the Commission and should: (1) State clearly the question(s) that the applicant wishes resolved; (2) cite the provision of law under which the question arises; and (3) state all fac…
(a) On the basis of the materials submitted, as well as any other information available, and if practicable, the Commission or its staff will inform the requesting party of its views. (b) Any advice given by the Commission is without prejudice to the right of the Commission to reconsider the questions involved and, whe…
Written advice rendered pursuant to this section and requests therefor, including names and details, will be placed in the Commission's public record immediately after the requesting party has received the advice, subject to any limitations on public disclosure arising from statutory restrictions, the Commission's rule…
Industry guides are administrative interpretations of laws administered by the Commission for the guidance of the public in conducting its affairs in conformity with legal requirements. They provide the basis for voluntary and simultaneous abandonment of unlawful practices by members of industry. Failure to comply with…
Industry guides 1 are promulgated by the Commission on its own initiative or pursuant to petition filed with the Secretary pursuant to § 1.31, by any interested person or group, when it appears to the Commission that guidance as to the legal requirements applicable to particular practices would be beneficial in the pub…
The rules in this subpart apply to and govern proceedings for the promulgation of rules as provided in section 18(a)(1)(B) of the Federal Trade Commission Act (15 U.S.C. 57a(a)(1)(B)). Such rules will be known as trade regulation rules. All other rulemaking proceedings will be governed by the rules in subpart C of this…