Federal Trade Commission v. Publishers Business Services, Inc.

MEMORANDUM

The Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) sued Publishers Business Services, Inc.; Ed Dantuma Enterprises, Inc. (referred to collectively as “PBS”); and six of its individual corporate officers and managers, all of whom are members of the same family, alleging widespread deceptive and abusive telemarketing practices. The district court granted the FTC’s motion for summary judgment and entered a permanent injunction. FTC v. Publishers Bus. Servs., Inc., 821 F.Supp.2d 1205, 1227-28 (D.Nev. 2010). After an evidentiary hearing, the district court awarded the FTC equitable damages of $191,219.00. See FTC v. Publishers Bus. Servs., No. 08-CV-00620, 2011 WL 7462205 , at *2 (D.Nev. July 25, 2011). Moreover, the district court held that only two individual defendants were liable for monetary relief, though each was subject to the permanent injunction. Id. Only the FTC appeals, arguing that damages should have been measured by defendants’ total gross receipts within the relevant time period ($34.4 million) and that all individual defendants should have been held jointly and severally liable for monetary relief.

We “reviewf ] a district court’s grant of equitable relief under the FTC…