Bank Stheet Clothes, Inc.

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IN THE MATTER OF BANK STHEET CLOTHES , INC., ET AL.

CONSENT ORDER, ETC., 11\ REGARD TO THE ALLEGED VIOLATlO1\ OF THE FEDERAL TRADE CO)IMTSSIQK A:1D THE WOOL PRODUCTS LABELING ACTS Ducket 7198. ComlJ/.aint, July 1958-DccisioJl, Dec. .1 , lD58 Consent order requiring manufacturers in "1e,,, York City to cease violating the Wool Products Labeling Act by falsely labeling l1wn s Sl1its as "All Wool Exclusive of Ornamentation; by improperly describing a portion of the filet' content as " worsted" ; by failing in other respects to conform to the labeling requirements of the Ad; and by furnishing false guaranties that certain cf their products \were not misbranded. J111' Ga.rland S. Fel'g'l80n for the Commission. Respondents, for themselves.

INITIAL DECISION BY J. EARL COX, HEARING EXAMINER The complaint charges respondents with misbranding certain of their \vool products, and with furnishing false guaranties that said products 'were not misbranded, in violation of the \V 001 Products Labeling Act of 1939 and the Rules and Regulations promulgated thereunder, and of the Federal Trade Commission Aet. After the issuance of the cDmp1aint, respondents and counsel supporting the complaint entered into an agreement containing consent order to cease and desist, yvhich was approved by the director and an acting assistant director of the Commission Bureau of Litigation, and thereafter transmitted to the hearing xamil1er fo1' ' onsicleratiC\n.

The agreement state" that respondent Bank Street Clothes, Inc. , is a corporation organized. existing and doing business under and by virtue of the laws of the State of New York, with its offce and prineinal place of business located at 162 Fifth Avenue, New York, N, , and that individual respondents Jack Lifshitz, Seymour Lindell and Jerry .Lindell are offcers of said corporate respol1dent and formulate, direct and control the ads, practices and policies thereof, their acldres being the same as that of the corporate respondent.

The agreement pro\'ides, among other things, that the respondents adn,it all the juriSlJictional facts aJlegeci in the complaint and agree that the record may bc taken as if findings of jurisdictional fads had been duly made in accordance with such a1- BANK STREET CLOTHES, INC., ET AL. 821 820 Order legations; that the record on which the initial decision and the decision of the Commission shall be based shall consist solely of the complaint and this agreement; that the agreement shall not become a part of the offcial record unless and until it becomes a part of the decision of the Commission; that the complaint may be used in construing the terms of the order agreed upon, which may be altered, modified or set aside in the manner provided for other orders; that the agreement is for settlement purposes only and does not constitute an admission by respondents that they have violated the law as alleged in the complaint; and that the order set forth in the agrcement and hereinafter included in this decision shall have the same force and effect as if entered after a full hearing.

Respondents waive any further procedural steps before the hearing examiner and the Commission, the making of findings of fact or conclusions of la"\\', and al1 of the rights they may have to challenge or contest the validity of the order to cease and desist entered in accordance 'with the agreement. The order agreed upon fuJ1y disposes of all the issues raised iu the complaint, and adequately prohibits the acts and practices charged therein as being in violation of the Wool Products Labeling Act of 1939 and the Rules and Regulations promulgated thereunder, and of the Federal Trade Commission Act. Accordingly, the hearing examiner fin,ls this proceeding t.o be in the public inh n:st, and accepts the agreement containing consent order to cease and desi t as part of the record upon which this decision is based, Therefore , lnc. , a It is ordered That respondent.s Bank Street Clothes corporation, and its offcers, and Jack Lifshitz, Seymour Lindel1 and Jerry Lindel1, inc1ividually and as offcers of said corporation and respondents' representatives, agents, and employees, direcUy or through any corporate or other device, in connection with the introduction or manufacture for introduction into commerce, or the offering for sale, sale, transportation or distribution in commerce, as "commerce" is defined in the Federal Trade Commission s suits Act, and the Wool Procluds Labeling Act of 1939, of men or other \'1001 products, as such products are defined in and subjed to said Wool Prollucts Labeling Act, do forthwith cease and desist from:

A. :l1isbranding such products by:

1. Falsely or deceptively stamping, tagging, labeling or other- Decision 55 F, wise identifying such products as to the character or amount of the constituent fibers included therein; 2. Failing to securely atIx or place on each such product a stamp, tag, label or other means of identification showing in a clear and conspicuous manner:

(a) The percentage of the total fiber weight of such wool products, exclusive of ornamentation not exceeding five percentum of said total fiber weight, of (1) wool, (2) reprocessed wool, (3) reused wool, (4) each fiber other than wool, where said percentage by weight of such fiber is five percentum or more, and (5) the aggregate of all other fibers;

(b) The maximum percentage of the total weight of such wool products of any nonfibrous loading, filling or adulterating matter; (c) The name or the registered identification number of the manufacturer of such wool product or of one or more persons engaged in introducing such wool product into commerce, or in the offering for sale, sale, transportation, distribution, or delivery for shipment thereof in commerce, as "commerce " is defined in the Wool Products Labeling Act of 1939;

3. Using a word or words to describe thc fiber content of wool products on tbe tag, label or other means of identification attached to such product which is not the common generic name of the fiber described;

4. Failing to attacb a stamp, tag, label or other means of identification containing the information required under S4 (a) (2) of the Wool Products Labeling Act and tbe I\ules and Regulations promulgated thereunder, to each unit of multi pic wool products sold in combination;

5. Failing to set forth on the stamp, tag, label or other means of identification attached to wool products, all items and parts of thc information required under S4 (a) (2) of the Wool Products Labeling Act and the Rules and Regulations promulgated thereunder, consecutively and in immediate connection with each other; B. Furnishing false guaranties that wool products are not misbranded when there is reason to believe that the wool products so guaranteed may be introduced into commerce or sold, tran.ported or distributed in commerce.

DECISION OF THE COMMISSION AND ORDER TO FILE REPORT OF COMPLIANCE Pursuant to Section 3. 21 of the Commission s Rules of Practice, the initial decision of the hearing examiner shah, on the BANK STREET CLOTHES, INC., ET AL. 823 820 Dccision 3d day of December J 958, become the decision of the Commission; and, accordingly:

It is ordered That respondents Bank Street Clothes, Inc. , a corporation, and Jack Lifshitz, Seymour Linde1l and Jerry Linde1l individual1ly and as offcers of said corporation, shall, within sixty (60) days after service upon them of this order, file with the Commission a report in writing, setting forth in detail the manner and form in which they have complied with the order to cease and desist.

Decision 55 F,