United States Seventh Circuit

In an agency action alleging that the promotion of therapeutic "ionized bracelets" constituted fraud, judgment for the FTC is affirmed where: 1) the magistrate judge did not hold the defendants' promotional statements to an excessively rigorous standard of proof; 2) the defendants failed to produce evidence rebutting the FTC's reasonable estimate of their profits; 3) the discrepancy between the return period for phone orders and orders placed over the Internet deceived reasonable persons who relied on information from a television commercial; and 4) the primary investor and CEO could be held jointly and severally liable since he engaged in both participation and control of the false promotional activities.

Appellate Information

• Argued 10/31/2007
• Decided 01/03/2008
• Published 01/03/2008

Judges

• EASTERBROOK, Chief Judge., Before EASTERBROOK, Chief Judge, and BAUER and WILLIAMS, Circuit Judges.

Court

• United States Seventh Circuit

Counsel

• For Appellees:
  
• Lawrence DeMille-Wagman (argued), Imad D. Abyad, William E. Kovacic, Federal Trade Commission, Office of the General Counsel, Washington, DC, for Plaintiff-Appellee., Helen E. Witt (argued), Wendy Netter Epstein, Kirkland & Ellis, Chicago, IL, for Defendants-Appellants.