United States Supreme Court Cases & Opinions

U.S. Supreme Court

FTC v. Mary Carter Paint Co., 382 U.S. 46 (1965)

Federal Trade Commission v. Mary Carter Paint Co.

No. 15

Argued October 21, 1965

Decided November 8, 1965

382 U.S. 46

Syllabus

Respondent paint company had a practice of advertising that, for every can of paint purchased, the buyer would be given a "free" can of equal quality and quantity. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ordered the paint company to cease and desist from the practice as being deceptive under § 5 of the Federal Trade Commission Act, since the paint company had no history of selling single cans of paint; it had been marketing two cans; and had misrepresented by allocating to one can what was in fact the price of two cans. The Court of Appeals set aside the FTC's order.

Held: There was substantial evidence in the record to support the finding of the FTC; its conclusion that the practice was deceptive was not arbitrary, and must be sustained. Pp. 382 U. S. 46-49.

333 F.2d 654 reversed and remanded.