§6309 — Title 15 Commerce and Trade | U.S. Code

Summary

The Attorney General can sue in federal court if there is reason to think someone is breaking these professional boxing rules. The Attorney General can ask the court for orders, like temporary or permanent bans and other steps, to stop a person from taking part in or promoting a boxing match that breaks the rules. A State’s top law enforcement officer can also sue on behalf of the State’s residents to stop matches, force compliance, get the fines in the law or restitution, or ask for other court-ordered relief. People who knowingly break the rules face criminal penalties. Managers, promoters, matchmakers, and licensees who knowingly break most rules can be jailed for up to 1 year, fined up to $20,000, or both. Other violators of certain listed provisions can be jailed up to 1 year or fined up to $100,000; if the match’s gross revenues exceed $2,000,000 there is an extra fine that scales with the revenue. Members or employees of boxing commissions who knowingly break a particular rule can be jailed up to 1 year or fined up to $20,000. A boxer who knowingly breaks the rules can be fined up to $1,000. Any boxer who loses money because of a rule violation may sue in federal or state court to get damages, court costs, and reasonable lawyer fees. The law cannot be used to enforce those rules against the Federal Trade Commission, the U.S. Attorney General, or a State’s chief legal officer for official actions or failures; it also does not allow the boxer damages rule to be used against a State or its subdivisions, and one specified rule does not apply to a boxer acting as a boxer.

Title 15, §6309

Commerce and Trade — Source: USLM XML via OLRC

(a)Whenever the Attorney General of the United States has reasonable cause to believe that a person is engaged in a violation of this chapter, the Attorney General may bring a civil action in the appropriate district court of the United States requesting such relief, including a permanent or temporary injunction, restraining order, or other order, against the person, as the Attorney General determines to be necessary to restrain the person from continuing to engage in, sanction, promote, or otherwise participate in a professional boxing match in violation of this chapter.

(b)(1)Any manager, promoter, matchmaker, and licensee who knowingly violates, or coerces or causes any other person to violate, any provision of this chapter, other than section 6307a(b),11 So in original. section 6307a does not contain a subsec. (b). 6307b, 6307c, 6307d, 6307e, 6307f, or 6307h of this title, shall, upon conviction, be imprisoned for not more than 1 year or fined not more than $20,000, or both.

(2)Any person who knowingly violates any provision of section 6307a(b),1 6307b, 6307c, 6307d, 6307e, 6307f, or 6307h of this title shall, upon conviction, be imprisoned for not more than 1 year or fined not more than—

(A)$100,000; and

(B)if a violation occurs in connection with a professional boxing match the gross revenues for which exceed $2,000,000, an additional amount which bears the same ratio to $100,000 as the amount of such revenues compared to $2,000,000, or both.

(3)Any member or employee of a boxing commission, any person who administers or enforces State boxing laws, and any member of the Association of Boxing Commissions who knowingly violates section 6308(a) of this title shall, upon conviction, be imprisoned for not more than 1 year or fined not more than $20,000, or both.

(4)Any boxer who knowingly violates any provision of this chapter shall, upon conviction, be fined not more than $1,000.

(c)Whenever the chief law enforcement officer of any State has reason to believe that a person or organization is engaging in practices which violate any requirement of this chapter, the State, as parens patriae, may bring a civil action on behalf of its residents in an appropriate district court of the United States—

(1)to enjoin the holding of any professional boxing match which the practice involves;

(2)to enforce compliance with this chapter;

(3)to obtain the fines provided under subsection (b) or appropriate restitution; or

(4)to obtain such other relief as the court may deem appropriate.

(d)Any boxer who suffers economic injury as a result of a violation of any provision of this chapter may bring an action in the appropriate Federal or State court and recover the damages suffered, court costs, and reasonable attorneys fees and expenses.

(e)Nothing in this chapter authorizes the enforcement of—

(1)any provision of this chapter against the Federal Trade Commission, the United States Attorney General, or the chief legal officer of any State for acting or failing to act in an official capacity;

(2)subsection (d) of this section against a State or political subdivision of a State, or any agency or instrumentality thereof; or

(3)section 6307b of this title against a boxer acting in his capacity as a boxer.

Notes & Related Subsidiaries

Editorial Notes

Amendments

2000—Subsec. (b)(1). Pub. L. 106–210, § 6(1), inserted “, other than section 6307a(b), 6307b, 6307c, 6307d, 6307e, 6307f, or 6307h of this title,” after “this chapter”. Subsec. (b)(2). Pub. L. 106–210, § 6(3), added par. (2). Former par. (2) redesignated (3). Subsec. (b)(3), (4). Pub. L. 106–210, § 6(2), (4), redesignated pars. (2) and (3) as (3) and (4), respectively, and in par. (3) substituted “section 6308(a)” for “section 6308”. Subsecs. (c) to (e). Pub. L. 106–210, § 6(5), added subsecs. (c) to (e).

Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries

Effective Date

Section effective Jan. 1, 1997, see section 23 of Pub. L. 104–272, set out as a note under section 6301 of this title.

§6309 Enforcement