Greenwood Furs, Inc.

Text (OCR of the scan at left; may contain errors)

which t.hey have complied with the order to cease and desist. Ix THE hTTER 0"

GREENWOOD FURS , TKC., ET AL.

CONSEKT mmEH , ETC. , IN REGARD TO THE ALLEGED VIOLATION OF 'l' FEDERAL TR.c\DR COl\DIISSION AND THE rcr PRODUCTS LABELING AC'l' Docket 820.1. C:omplnin, , Dec. 1960-Decision, Mar. SO, 1.961 Consent order requiring Kew York City furriers to cease violating the Fur Products Labeling Act h ' such practices as using on invoices the coined name " Hudson Seal" as descriptive of the fur, and by failng to observe invoicing requirements in other rc,' vccts. COl\IPL,/\T Pursuant to the provisions of the Federal Trade Commission Act and the Fur l' roduets Labeling Act, and by virtue of the authority vested in it by said Acts, the Federal Trade Commission, having reason to believe that Greenwood Furs, Inc., a corporation, and Maury Green and Albert Bauer, individually and as offcers of the said corporation, hereinafter referred to as respondents, have violated the provisions of said Acts and the R.ules and Regulations promulgated111nder the Fur Products Labeling Act, and it appearing to the Commission that a proceeding by it in respect thereof would be in the public interest, hereby issues its complaint, statjng its charges in that respect as follows:

PARAGRAPH 1. Greenwood Furs, Inc., is a corporation, organized e:'\:lsting and doing business lmder and by virtue of the laws of the State of Xew York, with its principal offce and place of business located at 350 7th Avenue, in the City of New York, State of New York.

Respondents )Iaury Green and Albert Bauer are offcers of the corporate respondent. They formulate, direct and control the acts 681-237--63-- , 530 FEDERAL TRADE COlTMISSIO DECISIONS Decision 58 E'.T.

and practices of the corporate respondent, including the acts and practices hereinafter set forth. Their address is the same as that of the corporate Tespondcnt.

PAR. 2. Subseqnent to the effective date of the Fur Products Labeling Act on August 9, 1952, respondents htLve been, and are now engaged in the introduction into commerce" and in the manufacture for introduction into commerce', and in the sale, advertising, offering fm' sale, t1'an8po1'l-1.t10n a. lld distribution in commerce, of fur products; :l1d have manufactured for sale, sold, advert.ised, offered for sale tr:llsportec1 mc1 clistribut-ed fur products which have been made in whole or in part of fur which has been shipped and received in commerce as the terms "co11merce fur" and " fur products" are cleilnccl in the Fur Products Labeling Act. PAIL 3. Certain of said fur products \were falsely and deceptively inyoic.ed by respondents in that they were not invoiced by respondents s reqllired by Section :J (b) (1) of the Fur Products Labeling Act and in the manner and form pre.scribed by the R.ules and Regulations promulgated thercunde.r.

PAIL 4. Certain of said fnr products ,,-ere falsely and deceptively invoiced in that respondents set forth on invoices pertaining to fur products a coined name as being descriptive of the fur of an animal which name is in fact fictitious, in violation of Section 5 (b) (2) of the Fur Products Labeling Act, and Rule 11 of the regulations pro- D1ulgatecl t.hereunder. Exemplifying this practice, but not limited thereto, .1S the practice of describing the fur a,s "I-Iuclson Seal,: when there is in fact no such animal1.

PAIL 5. The acts and practice,s of the respondents, as herein alleged, are in violation of the Fur Products Labeling Act. and the Rules and .R.egulations promulgated thereuucler, and constitute unfair and deceptive acts and practices in commerce under the Federal Trade Commission Act.

Oha1'les 1V. O:Oonnel1 Esq. supporting the complaint. Louis R. l'eig, Esq. of New York, N. , for respondents. INITIAL DECISION BY LEON H. GROSS, lfEAR1XG EXAJ.IINER On December 6 , 1960, the Federal Trade Commission issued a complaint aga.inst the abo\Te-named respondents: in which they were charged with violating t.he Federal Trade Commission Act, and the Fur Products Labeling Act and the R,ules andllegulations promulgated tlJel'ennc1E'l' by fa lc;ely or deceptively invoicing fur products sold by respondents in interstate commerce. A true and correct copy of the complaint was se,rved upon respondents and each and (l,ll of GREENWOOD FURS L\C. ET AL. 531 529 Decision them, as required by law. Thereafter respondents appeared by counsel and agreed to dispose of the proceeding without a formal hearing pursuant to the terms of an agreement dated January 25, 1961 containing consent order to cease and desist. The agreement was submitted to the undersigned hearing examiner on February 1, 1961 in accordance with S3.25 of the Commission s Rules of Practice for Adjudicative Proceedings. The agreement purports to dispose of this proceeding as to the respondents and each and a.ll of thenl and contains the forlYl of a consent cease and desist order which the parties have represented is dispositive of the issues involved in this proceeding. The agreement has been signed by the corporate rspondent by its president, by the individual respondents individually and as offcers of said corporation, by the attorney for both parties, and has been approved by the Assistant Director, Associate Director and Director of the Bureau of Litigation of the Federal Trade Commission. In said agreement respondents admit all of the jurisdictional facts alleged in the complaint and agree that the record may be taken as if findings of jurisdictional facts had been made in accordance with such allegations. In the agreement the respondents waive: (a) any further procedural steps before the hearing examiner and the Commission; (b) the making of findings of fact or conclusions of law; and (c) all rights respondents may have to challenge or contest the validity of the order to cease and desist entered in accordance with the a,greemcnt.

The parties further agree, in said agreement, that the record on which the initial decision and the decision of the COllllnission shall be based shall consist solely of the complaint and the 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 Federal Trade Commission; that the order to cease and desist entered in this proceeding by the Commission may be entered without further notice to the respondents, and when so entered such order will have the same force ,md effect as if entered after a full hearing. Said order may be altered, modiiied or set aside in the lllanner provided for other orders. The complaint may be used in construing the terms of the order.

The parties have covenanted that the said agreement is for settlement purposes only and does not constitute an admission by the respondents that they have violated the law as alleged in the complaint.

This proceeding having now come on for final consideration on the complaint and the aforesaid agreement of January 25 , 19fH containing consent order, and it appearing that the order which is , Findings 58 F.

approved in and by said agreement disposes of all the issues presented by the complaint as to all of the part.ies involved, said agree. ment is hereby accepted and approved as complying with 21 and 25 of the Commission s Rules of Practice for Adjudicative Proceedings. The undersigned hearing examiner having considered the agreement and proposed order and being of the opinion that the acceptance thereof will be in the public interest, makes the following findings and issues the following order:

INDIKGS 1. The Federal Trade Commission has jurisdiction over the parties and the subject matter of this proceeding; and this proceeding is in the public interest;

2. Respondent Greenwood Furs, Inc., is a corporation existing and doing business under and by virtue of the laws of the State of New Yark, with its offce and principal place of business located at 350 7th A venue, in the City of New York, State of N ew York: 3. Respondents :'-Iury Green and Albert Bauer are offcers of the corporate respondent. They formuhLte, direct and control the acts and practices of the corporate respondent. Their address is the sa,me as that of the corporate respondent; 4. Respondents are cnga,ged in commerce as "conlmerce ' is defined in the pertinent statutes which are involved by the complaint filed herein. Now, therefore It is orde-red That respondents Greenwood Furs, Inc., a corponltion, and its of-ficers, and :l\aury green a.nd Albert Bauer, individually and as offcers of said corporation, and respondents' representatives. agents and employees, directly or through any corporate or other device, in connection with the introduction into commerce, or the manufacture for introduction into COHllnerce, or or the sale, advertising, offering for sale, transportation or distribution in commerce of fur products; or in connection with the sale, advertising, offering for sale, transportation or distribution of fur products which are made in ,whole or in part of fur which has been shipped and received in commerce, as "commerce fur " a,ncl "fur product" are used in the Fur Products Labeling Act, do forthwith cease and desist from: A. Falsely or deceptively invoicing fur products by: 1. Failing to furnish invoices t.o purchasers of fur products showing all of the information required to be disclosed by each of the subsections of 5(b) (1) of the Fur Products Labeling Act: 2. Using the term "Hudson Seal" , or any other coined name, as being descri!Jtive of the fur of an animal which is in fact fictitious or non-existent.

, ) BER:\TARD SHAPIRO \VOOLEK Calif. ET AL. 533 529 Complaint DECISION OF Tile CO IlIlSSroN . D ORDER TO FILE REPORT OF COMPLIANCE Pl1rsunnt. to Section :-3.21 of the Commission s Rules of Practice the initial decision of the hearing examiner shall, OIl the 30th day of ?\Iarch, 1061 , becmne the decision of the Commission; and accordingly:

It is ordei' Th:lt the above-named respondents, shall within sixty (60) days after service upon them of this order, file with the Commission a report in writ.ing, setting forth in detail the manner and form in ,,-hieh t.hey have complied ,with the order to cease and desist.