Federal Trade Commission v. Intuit Inc.
Opinion
Trial Court Opinion
IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE NORTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA 7 FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION, Case No. 22-cv-01973-CRB
Plaintiff,
ORDER DENYING MOTION FOR
v.
EMERGENCY RELIEF
INTUIT INC., Defendant.
Plaintiff Federal Trade Commission (FTC) moves for a Temporary Restraining Order and a Preliminary Injunction under Section 13(b) of the FTC Act, arguing that Defendant Intuit Inc. is deceptively advertising TurboTax Free Edition in violation of Section 5(a). See Emergency Mot. (dkt. 28); Compl. (dkt. 1). The FTC alleges that Intuit advertises that TurboTax Free Edition is “free free free free” and includes only a small and vague disclaimer that it is “for simple returns only” or to “see details at TurboTax.com.” Taxpayers whose returns do not meet Intuit’s definition of “simple” eventually run into a message on the TurboTax website informing them that they must pay to file. Under Section 13(b) of the FTC Act, a district court may grant a preliminary injunction “[u]pon a proper showing that, weighing the…