Axon Enterprise, Inc. v. FTC
Issues
Does the FTC Act remove subject-matter jurisdiction from district courts to hear constitutional challenges to the FTC’s structure, procedures, and existence by providing for FTC administrative adjudication of antitrust issues and review of these decisions by the courts of appeals?
This case asks the Supreme Court to decide whether claims brought by parties like Axon Enterprise, Inc. (“Axon”) that challenge the structure of the Federal Trade Commission can be reviewed by district courts prior to the completion of agency proceedings. Axon contends that federal district courts should be able to hear constitutional challenges to agency structure concurrently with agency enforcement proceedings because enjoining such proceedings is necessary to avoid “here-and-now” constitutional injury. The FTC counters that the Federal Trade Commission Act implicitly strips district courts of subject-matter jurisdiction over these challenges, making judicial review available only in the courts of appeals and only after a final order by the FTC. The case carries significant implications for administrative law because allowing businesses subject to FTC regulation to preemptively challenge agency proceedings could significantly scale back the agency’s enforcement powers.
Questions as Framed for the Court by the Parties
Whether Congress impliedly stripped federal district courts of jurisdiction over constitutional challenges to the Federal Trade Commission’s structure, procedures, and existence by granting the courts of appeals jurisdiction to “affirm, enforce, modify, or set aside” the commission’s cease-and-desist orders.
The Federal Trade Commission Act (the “FTC Act”) empowers the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) to address the use of “unfair methods of competition” by initiating administrative proceedings and issuing cease-and-desist orders. Axon Enter. v. Trade Comm’n at 1189.
Additional Resources
- Alison Frankel, SCOTUS case could have 'astonishing consequences' for federal agency enforcement, Reuters Legal (Jan. 25, 2022).
- Amy B. Gordon & David A. Munkittrick, The Administrative State Under Attack: Potentially Far Reaching Implications of Supreme Court’s Decision to Hear Challenge to FTC Administrative Review Process, National Law Review (Feb. 7, 2022).
- Gus Hurwitz, FTC Could Soon Face High Court Reprimand, RealClearPolicy (Oct. 11, 2022).
- Eleanor Tyler, ANALYSIS: 5th Cir.'s Stand on ALJs May Spell Trouble for the FTC, Bloomberg Law (June 3, 2022).