A recent ruling in a Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) class action illustrates how the TCPA risks incurred by political campaigns can be spread to the platforms that those campaigns use to send their messages. The case—Klueh v. Vallas, Case No. 19-cv-00249, 2020 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 152979 (N.D. Ill. August 24, 2020)—centers on text messages… Continue reading Court Rules Against Texting Platform in Mayoral Campaign TCPA Class Action
Tag: Automatic Telephone Dialing System
Court Allows One Call TCPA Class Action to Proceed
If there is one constancy in Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) litigation, it is its inconsistency. Differing jurisdictional precedents; differing interpretations of dialing technology; and evolving, sometimes contradictory Federal Communications Commission (FCC) rulemaking combine with the usual idiosyncrasies and vagaries of the court system to produce a legal ecosystem in which one court can rule… Continue reading Court Allows One Call TCPA Class Action to Proceed
TCPA Risks for Political Campaigns
Some callers may be under the mistaken impression that political calls are exempt from the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA). This is not true. However, because political calls are not regulated in the same way as marketing calls it is important to understand the distinct character of TCPA regulations for political campaigns. This article outlines the regulations and requirements that govern this unique form of telephone solicitation.
Georgia Congressional Candidate Faces TCPA Lawsuit Over Campaign Texts
A Georgia state legislator faces a class action for alleged Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) violations committed in service of her campaign for a congressional seat. The suit demonstrates that political campaigns are a target for TCPA litigation, even ones that have a lower profile than presidential campaigns. The lawsuit—Bowman v. Unterman—centers on two text… Continue reading Georgia Congressional Candidate Faces TCPA Lawsuit Over Campaign Texts
Run It Back: SCOTUS Agrees to Hear Another Potentially Huge TCPA Case Next Year
While everybody is still digesting the Supreme Court’s status-quo-maintaining decision in Barr v. AAPC, the court announced that they have granted the petition for writ of certiorari in another case that could have significant consequences for the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA). And unlike Barr, this case challenges the statute’s all-important automatic telephone dialing system… Continue reading Run It Back: SCOTUS Agrees to Hear Another Potentially Huge TCPA Case Next Year
SCOTUS Strikes Down Debt Exemption, Upholds TCPA as a Whole
This is the way Barr v. AAPC ends This is the way Barr v. AAPC ends This is the way Barr v. AAPC ends Not with a bang but with a whimper. After all the legal wrangling and parsing of oral arguments, the Supreme Court handed down a decision today in a case that had… Continue reading SCOTUS Strikes Down Debt Exemption, Upholds TCPA as a Whole
TCPA Lawsuits on Both Sides of the Aisle: Bernie Sanders’s Campaign Sued
As we enter the summer of an election year, we are seeing further evidence of how the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) poses risks for political campaigns. This week, a TCPA class action was filed against the erstwhile presidential campaign of Vermont senator Bernie Sanders. The case—Jacob Buller and Cody Olson v. Bernie 2020 Inc.,… Continue reading TCPA Lawsuits on Both Sides of the Aisle: Bernie Sanders’s Campaign Sued
Infamous Serial Plaintiff’s Latest Lawsuit Dismissed
Craig Cunningham is among the most notorious serial plaintiffs in consumer protection law, but his most recent attempt to enrich himself thanks to the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) has been unsuccessful. Cunningham is infamous for having represented himself in dozens of Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA), Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA), and TCPA… Continue reading Infamous Serial Plaintiff’s Latest Lawsuit Dismissed
Judge in Trump Campaign TCPA Lawsuit Adopts Marks Definition of ATDS
In the latest decision in the ongoing Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) class action against President Trump’s re-election campaign, the Eighth District Court of Appeals adopted the expansive definition of what constitutes an Automatic Telephone Dialing System (ATDS) previously set forth in the Ninth Circuit’s infamous, landmark decision in Marks v. Crunch San Diego, LLC.… Continue reading Judge in Trump Campaign TCPA Lawsuit Adopts Marks Definition of ATDS
Seller Files Complaint Against Marketer Alleging Fraudulent TCPA Consent
An energy supplier that is a defendant in a class action for alleged Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) has filed a counterclaim against a third-party leads generator, alleging that the TCPA violations came about because they expressly disregarded compliance instructions and then falsified documentation to cover up their misdeeds. The energy company, Direct Energy, hired… Continue reading Seller Files Complaint Against Marketer Alleging Fraudulent TCPA Consent