7 U.S.C. § 215
Section 215 · Failure to obey orders; punishment
Amended 2 times on record
Applied in 6 court decisions — leading case Atlas Roofing Co. v. Occupational Safety & Health Review Commission (1975)
Most recently applied in Washington Gas Light Co. v. Public Service Commission (October 2009)
How often courts cite this section
Court decisions citing this, by year.Markers show enactment, consequential amendments, and circuit splits over this section — watch for a citation surge after a change or a disagreement. The dip in the last several years is a data-coverage gap, not a real trend — our corpus holds fewer opinions from the most recent years, so recent citations are undercounted.
(a) Any stockyard owner, market agency, or dealer who knowingly fails to obey any order made under the provisions of sections 211, 212, or 213 of this title shall forfeit to the United States the sum of $500 for each offense. Each distinct violation shall be a separate offense, and in case of a continuing violation each day shall be deemed a separate offense. Such forfeiture shall be recoverable in a civil suit in the name of the United States.
(b) It shall be the duty of the various United States attorneys, under the direction of the Attorney General, to prosecute for the recovery of forfeitures. The costs and expense of such prosecution shall be paid out of the appropriation for the expenses of the courts of the United States.
Editorial notes U.S. Code · Office of the Law Revision Counsel
Change of Name
Act June 25, 1948, eff. Sept. 1, 1948, substituted “United States attorneys” for “district attorneys” in subsec. (a). See section 541 of Title 28, Judiciary and Judicial Procedure, and Historical and Revision Notes thereunder.
Cross References
Jurisdiction of district courts of actions for recovery of forfeitures, see section 1355 of Title 28, Judiciary and Judicial Procedure.