Since its enactment in 1973, Section 13(b) of the
Federal Trade Commission Act has been relied upon by the Federal
Trade Commission as an avenue to bypass administrative proceedings
and directly seek and obtain monetary relief from federal courts
for alleged violations of Section 5 of the FTC Act. The recent U.S.
Supreme Court decision in AMG Capital Management v. FTC
rejected this judicially implied right developed by the lower
courts, limiting the scope of the FTC's enforcement
abilities.
On April 22, 2021, the Supreme Court of the United States
unanimously reversed a decision of the U.S. Court of Appeals for
the Ninth Circuit and held that Section 13(b) of the Federal Trade
Commission Act (the FTC Act) does not allow the Federal Trade
Commission (FTC) to seek, or a federal court to award, equitable
monetary relief such as restitution or disgorgement. The FTC had
routinely relied on this provision for many years, with 49
complaints filed and 81 permanent
