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Emergency Motion to Shorten Response Deadlines — FTC v. Ponte Investments, LLC (April 17, 2020)

Summary

In Federal Trade Commission v. Ponte Investments, LLC and John C. Ponte, Case No. 1:20-cv-00177 in the District of Rhode Island, the FTC moves on an emergency basis (Document 4, filed 04/17/20) for an order requiring the defendants to respond by 5 p.m. on Monday, April 20, 2020 to its forthcoming motion for a temporary restraining order and an order to show cause why a preliminary injunction should not issue. The FTC alleges the defendants, doing business as SBA Loan Program, violated Section 5 of the Federal Trade Commission Act by telling small businesses they were authorized to provide Paycheck Protection Program loans under the CARES Act. The motion says this harms small businesses' access to the limited pool of funds and that the FTC will serve the papers by process server and email.

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Cite this document

“Emergency Motion to Shorten Response Deadlines — FTC v. Ponte Investments, LLC (April 17, 2020).” Archived at Pandemic Darlings, https://pandemicdarlings.com/source-documents/4-c041cadd47/, SHA-256 211a15cbf0559ed76d14b071444b34ba4ecee1750d1475462efd2e7862d02d5a.

Full text

Case 1:20-cv-00177-JJM-PAS          Document 4       Filed 04/17/20      Page 1 of 2 PageID #: 42




                        IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
                         FOR THE DISTRICT OF RHODE ISLAND


 FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION,                              CASE NO. 1:20-cv-00177
       Plaintiff,
                                                        EMERGENCY MOTION TO
                                                        SHORTEN RESPONSE DEADLINES
                                                        TO FTC’S FORTHCOMING
                                                        MOTION FOR A
       v.                                               TEMPORARY RESTRAINING
                                                        ORDER, AND OTHER EQUITABLE
 PONTE INVESTMENTS, LLC, a limited liability            RELIEF, AND ORDER TO SHOW
 company, also d/b/a SBA LOAN PROGRAM and               CAUSE WHY A PRELIMINARY
 d/b/a SBA LOAN PROGRAM.com, and                        INJUNCTION SHOULD NOT ISSUE
 JOHN C. PONTE, individually and as an officer
 of PONTE INVESTMENTS, LLC,
       Defendants.


        Pursuant to Rule 7 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, and Local Civil Rules 7(a)(3)

 and 9, the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) moves for an order requiring Ponte Investments,

 LLC and John C. Ponte (“Defendants”) to file a response by 5 p.m. on Monday, April 20, 2020

 to the FTC’s forthcoming motion for a temporary restraining order (“TRO”), and other equitable

 relief, and an order to show cause why a preliminary injunction should not issue.

        As outlined in the FTC’s Complaint (Dkt. 1), the FTC alleges that Defendants are

 violating Section 5 of the Federal Trade Commission Act, 5 U.S.C. § 45, by making

 misrepresentations to small businesses that they are authorized to provide Paycheck Protection

 Program (“PPP”) loans to small businesses pursuant to the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and

 Economic Security Act (“CARES Act”), P.L. 116-136. Because these actions harm small

 businesses’ ability to access these funds—including by delaying their application to the limited

 pool of appropriated funds—the FTC intends to file shortly today a TRO motion that would,

 among other things, bar Defendants from making such representations.



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Case 1:20-cv-00177-JJM-PAS          Document 4       Filed 04/17/20     Page 2 of 2 PageID #: 43




        In addition to serving the complaint, this emergency motion, and the TRO motion on

 Defendants by process server, the FTC intends to e-mail courtesy copies of these filings to

 Defendants immediately after filing the TRO motion today.

        Under the Court’s normal rules, Defendants’ response would be due on May 1, 2020,

 during which time Defendants would continue harming small businesses through their

 misrepresentations. The FTC thus respectfully requests that the Court shorten the time for

 Defendants’ response, and order that any response be filed by 5 p.m. on Monday, April 20, 2020.

 The FTC also respectfully requests that the Court schedule a telephonic hearing on the motion at

 its earliest convenience.

 Dated: April 17, 2020                        Respectfully submitted,


                                              /s/ Thomas J. Widor
                                              THOMAS J. WIDOR
                                              D.C. Bar No. 490184
                                              SANYA SHAHRASBI
                                              D.C. Bar No. 1671001
                                              DANIEL DWYER
                                              California Bar No. 286701

                                              Federal Trade Commission
                                              600 Pennsylvania Ave., NW, CC-10232
                                              Washington, DC 20580
                                              (202) 326-3039 (Widor)
                                              (202) 326-2709 (Shahrasbi)
                                              (202) 326-2957 (Dwyer)
                                              twidor@ftc.gov
                                              sshahrasbi@ftc.gov
                                              ddwyer@ftc.gov
                                              Fax: 202-326-3768




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