{"data":{"id":"us/16-cfr-3.11","jurisdiction":"us","citation":"16 CFR 3.11","heading":"Commencement of proceedings.","body":"(a) Complaint. Except as provided in § 3.13, an adjudicative proceeding is commenced when an affirmative vote is taken by the Commission to issue a complaint.\n(b) Form of complaint. The Commission's complaint shall contain the following:\n(1) Recital of the legal authority and jurisdiction for institution of the proceeding, with specific designation of the statutory provisions alleged to have been violated;\n(2) A clear and concise factual statement sufficient to inform each respondent with reasonable definiteness of the type of acts or practices alleged to be in violation of the law;\n(3) Where practical, a form of order which the Commission has reason to believe should issue if the facts are found to be as alleged in the complaint; and\n(4) Notice of the specific date, time and place for the evidentiary hearing. Unless a different date is determined by the Commission, the date of the evidentiary hearing shall be 5 months from the date of the administrative complaint in a proceeding in which the Commission, in an ancillary proceeding, has sought or is seeking relief pursuant to Section 13(b) of the FTC Act, 15 U.S.C. 53(b), and 8 months from the date of issuance of the administrative complaint in all other proceedings.","path":["Title 16—Commercial Practices","CHAPTER I—FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION","SUBCHAPTER A—ORGANIZATION, PROCEDURES AND RULES OF PRACTICE","PART 3—RULES OF PRACTICE FOR ADJUDICATIVE PROCEEDINGS","Subpart B—Pleadings"],"source_url":"https://www.ecfr.gov/api/versioner/v1/full/2026-08-25/title-16.xml","current_through":"2026-08-25","vintage":"","retrieved_at":"2026-08-27T02:24:29Z","sha256":"8d8548c547d835acd3e5fd35345332dd0380347dd2c71390794379126af8f217","source_id":"us-cfr","stale":true,"prev":"us/16-cfr-3.2","next":"us/16-cfr-3.12"},"notice":"GroundRules: Original legal text. Not legal advice."}