Consumer Law Library

Guide For Avoiding Deceptive Use Of Word "Mall" The Textile Industry

16 CFR Part 236 · Guides · in the Code of Federal Regulations 1980-1980 (1 annual editions)

Scanned CFR pages, OCR text may contain errors; the linked Library of Congress PDF is the authority. Not legal advice; not affiliated with the FTC. These rules and guides are historical: most were rescinded or replaced, so do not assume any is in force.

Latest edition: Library of Congress, 1980 CFR · Earliest edition: 1980 CFR

Text (1980 edition, OCR)

§ 235.8

clear and conspicuous disclosure in
close conjunction with such represen-
tation of:

(a) The nature and extent of the
guarantee; and

(b) Any material conditions or limi-
tations in the guarantee which are im-
posed by the guarantor; and

(c) The manner in which the guaran-
tor will perform thereunder; and

(d) The identity of the guarantor.

Note: The Commission’s April 26, 1960
Guides Against Deceptive Advertising of
Guarantees (25 FR 3772) furnish additional
guidance respecting guarantee representa-
tions and are to be considered as supple-
menting this section. Copies are available
upon request.

(Guide 7]

§ 235.8 Placing deceptive material in the
hands of others.

Manufacturers and distributors shall
not place in the hands of wholesalers,
jobbers, retailers, or others, promo-
tional material by or through which
they may deceive or mislead the pur-
chasing and consuming public con-
cerning any product. (Guide 8]

PART 236—GUIDE FOR AVOIDING
DECEPTIVE USE OF WORD “MILL”
IN THE TEXTILE INDUSTRY

Sec.

236.1 General rule.

236.2 The requirement of operational con-
trol.

236.3 Examples of deceptive usage of the
word “mill.”

236.4 Exception to general rule.

AvuTuHority: Secs. 5, 6, 38 Stat. 719, as
amended, 721; 15 U.S.C. 45, 46, unless other-
wise noted.

Source: 32 FR 15538, Nov. 8, 1967, unless
otherwise noted.

§ 236.1 General rule.

Simply stated, the general rule is
that the word “mill” should not be
used in the corporate, business, or
trade name of any person or concern
handling textiles, or in any other
manner, unless the person or concern
actually owns and operates or directly
and absolutely controls the manufac-
turing facility in which all textile ma-
terials which are sold under that name
are produced.

Title 16—Commercial Practices

§ 236.2 The requirement of operational
control.

(a) For a firm to qualify as a bona
fide mill it must exercise direct and
absolute control over the milling facili-
ty in which its merchandise is pro-
duced. Contracting to have milling op-
erations performed by others will not
qualify one as a mill.

(b) A_ distributor who furnishes
yarns and other materials to a knit-
ting mill for manufacture into gar-
ments according to the distributor’s
specifications is not a mill because it
does not exercise direct and absolute
operational control over the milling
operations. A firm having a written
“lease” with a mill whereby the mill
allocated five of its looms and the
workers at such looms to manufacture
ribbon for the jobber from materials
supplied by, and according to instruc-
tions from, the jobber is not a mill] for
the same reason. Even if a jobber
takes the entire output of a mill, he
does not thereby become a mill.

§ 236.3 Examples of deceptive usage of the
word “mill.” ;

Illustrative situations in which use
of “mill” in designating trade status
has been found to be deceptive are the
following:

(a) A corporation which purchased
unfinished silk and rayon cloth from
weavers or manufacturers, caused
such cloth to be dyed, printed, or proc-
essed into finished dry goods by others
and sold such goods to retailers, mem-
bers of the cutting up trade and
others;

(b) A tailor who made made-to-meas-
ure suits but did not produce the cloth
from which the suits were made;

(c) A selling agent who represented a
number of suit fabric manufacturers;

(d) An independent retailer who
claimed to be a ‘‘mill’s outlet.”

§ 236.4 Exception to general rule.

(a) Under the exceptional circum-
stances set forth below, the Commis-
sion may permit a nonmanufacturing
concern to continue to use the word
“mill” in its trade name provided that
it is accompanied by a qualifying
phrase which clearly states that the
concern is not a mill and does not own

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Chapter |—Federal Trade Commission

or operate a facility which manufac-
tures textiles. This exception only ap-
plies if:

(1) The name of the concern has
become a valuable business asset and
its loss would result in a substantial
hardship; and

(2) The qualifying phrase will elimi-
nate all possibility of deception.

(b) Factors to be taken into consider-
ation in determining whether a trade
name has become a valuable business
asset the loss of which would become a
hardship are as follows:

(1) Extent and period of time during
which the name has been used;

(2) Funds and efforts expended in
establishing and promoting the name;

(3) The extent of the goodwill en-
joyed by the company;

(4) The adverse effect on the compa-
ny that could reasonably be expected
if use of the word ‘mill’ had to be dis-
continued.

PART 237—GUIDES AGAINST DEBT
COLLECTION DECEPTION

Sec.

237.0 Definitions of terms as used in these
guides in this part.

237.1 Deception (general).

237.2 Disclosure of purpose.

237.3 Government affiliation.

237.4 Organizational titles.

237.5 Trade status.

237.6 Services.

AuTHoRITy: Secs. 5, 6, 38 Stat. 719, as
amended, 721; 15 U.S.C. 45, 46, unless other-
wise noted.

Source: 32 FR 15539, Nov. 8, 1967, unless
otherwise noted.

§ 237.0 Definitions of terms as used in
these guides in this part.

(a) “Industry Member” shall mean
any person, firm, partnership, corpora-
tion, organization, association and any
other legal entity engaged in the prac-
tice of collecting or attempting to col-
lect any and all kinds of money debts
for itself or others, or any person,
firm, partnership, corporation, organi-
zation, association, or any other legal
entity which places in the hands of
others through sale or otherwise, or
distributes for itself or others, any
kind of material used or to be used in
connection with collecting or attempt-

§ 237.1

ing to collect such debts or seeking in-
formation concerning debtors, com-
monly called skip-tracing.

(b) “Debt” shall mean money which
is due or alleged to be due from one to
another.

(c) “Debtor” shall mean one who
owes or is alleged to owe a money
debt.

(d) “Creditor” shall mean one to
whom a money debt is due or is al-
leged to be due.

(e) “Credit Bureau’’—any person,
firm, partnership, corporation, organi-
zation, association, or any other legal
entity engaged ir. gathering, recording,
and disseminating favorable as well as
unfavorable infcrmation relative to
the credit worthiness, financial re-
sponsibility, paying habits and charac-
ter of individuals, firms, corporations,
and any other legal entity being con-
sidered for credit extension, so that
prospective creditor may be able to
make a sound decision in the exten-
sion of credit.

(f) “Collection Agency’’—any person,
firm, partnership, corporation, organi-
zation, association, and any other legal
entity which collects money debts for
others.

§ 237.1

An industry member shall not use
any deceptive representation or decep-
tive means to collect or attempt to col-
lect debts or to obtain information
concerning debtors.

Deception (general).

Nore: The Commission has found that in
the collection of debts some industry mem-
bers either disguise the purpose for which
information is desired or hold out an in-
ducement to debtors to furnish inforrnation
which is not in their interest to supply and
which they normally would not voluntarily
furnish. In connection with the collection or
attempted collection of debts or the seeking
of information concerning debtors, the
Commission has prohibited, among others,
the following misrepresentations:

1. That an industry member was seeking
information in connection with a survey.

2. That an industry member is in the busi-
ness of a casting service for the motion pic-
ture or television industry.

3. That an industry member has a prepaid
package for the debtor.

4. That a sum of money or valuable gift
will be sent to the addressee if the required
information is furnished.

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