CONCLUSIVENESS OF THE FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION'S FINDINGS AS TO FACTS

Authors

Gregory Hankin, Of Washington, D. C.

Abstract

The Federal Trade Commission Act and the Clayton Act provide that the Commission's findings as to facts, if supported by testimony, shall be conclusive. Now that the Commission has functioned for almost ten years and a considerable number of its findings have been reviewed by the courts, it is interesting to examine the effect of this statutory provision. In other words, are the findings of the Federal Trade Commission as to facts, if supported by testimony, actually conclusive on the courts when appeal is taken to the Circuit Court of Appeals? This we shall discuss apart from the question--"What, as a matter of fact, constitutes unfair methods of competition." By findings as to facts we now mean such conclusions of fact as a jury would make under the direction of the court, or such as are preliminary to the finding that a given practice constitutes an unfair method of competition or. is contrary to the Clayton act. Before embarking on the discussion of the Federal Trade Commission cases, we shall examine the general theory of the law on this point, and its application to the findings made by other administrative bodies.

Recommended Citation

Gregory Hankin, CONCLUSIVENESS OF THE FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION'S FINDINGS AS TO FACTS, 23 Mich. L. Rev. 233 (1925).
Available at: https://repository.law.umich.edu/mlr/vol23/iss3/4