16 CFR § 5.54 - Referral to the Office of Government Ethics and to the Department of Justice.
---identifier: "/us/cfr/t16/s5.54"source: "ecfr"legal_status: "authoritative_unofficial"title: "16 CFR § 5.54 - Referral to the Office of Government Ethics and to the Department of Justice."title_number: 16title_name: "Commercial Practices"section_number: "5.54"section_name: "Referral to the Office of Government Ethics and to the Department of Justice."chapter_name: "FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION"subchapter_number: "A"subchapter_name: "ORGANIZATION, PROCEDURES AND RULES OF PRACTICE"part_number: "5"part_name: "STANDARDS OF CONDUCT"positive_law: falsecurrency: "2026-03-24"last_updated: "2026-03-24"format_version: "1.1.0"generator: "[email protected]"authority: "5 U.S.C. 7301; 5 U.S.C. App. (Ethics in Government Act of 1978); 15 U.S.C. 46(g); E.O. 12674, 54 FR 15159, 3 CFR, 1989 Comp., p. 215, as modified by E.O. 12731, 55 FR 42547, 3 CFR, 1990 Comp., p. 306; 5 CFR part 2635."regulatory_source: "32 FR 13272, Sept. 20, 1967, unless otherwise noted. Redesignated at 41 FR 54483, Dec. 14, 1976."cfr_part: "5"---
Identifier
/us/cfr/t16/s5.54
Currency
2026-03-24
Positive Law
No
Updated
2026-03-24
Chapter
Federal Trade Commission
Authority
5 U.S.C. 7301; 5 U.S.C. App. (Ethics in Government Act of 1978); 15 U.S.C. 46(g); E.O. 12674, 54 FR 15159, 3 CFR, 1989 Comp., p. 215, as modified by E.O. 12731, 55 FR 42547, 3 CFR, 1990 Comp., p. 306;... 5 U.S.C. 7301; 5 U.S.C. App. (Ethics in Government Act of 1978); 15 U.S.C. 46(g); E.O. 12674, 54 FR 15159, 3 CFR, 1989 Comp., p. 215, as modified by E.O. 12731, 55 FR 42547, 3 CFR, 1990 Comp., p. 306; 5 CFR part 2635.
# 5.54 Referral to the Office of Government Ethics and to the Department of Justice.(a) The General Counsel shall make a preliminary determination of whether the matter appears frivolous and, if not, shall expeditiously transmit any available information to the Director of the Office of Government Ethics and to the Criminal Division, Department of Justice.(b) Unless the Department of Justice communicates to the Commission that it does not intend to initiate criminal prosecution, the General Counsel shall coordinate any investigation or proceeding under this part with the Department of Justice in order to avoid prejudicing criminal proceedings.