C.A. 1st;
A141613

The First Appellate District affirmed a judgment. In the published portion of its opinion, the court held that the trial court did not abuse its discretion in its imposition of either civil penalties or injunctive relief based on an online retailer's willful use of deceptively high “comparison prices” for its products.

In July 2007, a customer complained to Overstock,com, Inc. that its posted “list price” for a patio set he had purchased was grossly inflated. Overstock provided the customer a full refund, but did not change its posted “list price,” despite having received a similar complaint four months earlier. The customer reported the matter to the Shasta County District Attorney. The People, through a number of district attorneys, began investigate Overstock's alleged practice of inflating the “list” or “compare at” prices for its merchandise. In September 2013, the case went to trial.