Eleventh Circuit Rejects Class Action Representative’s Incentive Award
10/12/20
By: Matthew Foree The Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit recently confronted the issue of incentive awards commonly given to class representatives as part of class-wide settlements. The court held in Johnson v. NPAS Sols., LLC, which can be found here, that such an award was inappropriate. Plaintiff Charles T. Johnson filed the underlying case…
Supreme Court to Hear TCPA Case on Autodialer Definition
8/18/20
By: Matthew Foree The Supreme Court of the United States recently announced that it will consider an important Telephone Consumer Protection Act (“TCPA”) case concerning the problematic statutory definition of “automatic telephone dialing system” (“ATDS”). Information about the case, Facebook, Inc. v. Duguid, can be found here. As we have reported several times before, the determination as to…
BREAKING – Supreme Court Severs Government-Debt Exception From TCPA
7/7/20
By: Matt Foree Yesterday, the Supreme Court of the United States issued its decision in Barr vs American Association of Political Consultants, Inc. As we reported earlier here, this case deals with the constitutionality of the government-debt exception to the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (“TCPA”). In a 2015 amendment to the TCPA, Congress exempted from…
Breaking – Eleventh Circuit Holds No TCPA Standing For Receipt of Single Unsolicited Text Message
8/29/19
By: Matthew Foree In Salcedo v. Alex Hanna, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit has just issued a major decision holding that receipt of a single unsolicited text message does not establish standing under the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (“TCPA”). A copy of the opinion is available here. In this case, the plaintiff,…
Largest Jury Verdict in TCPA History: Defendant Faces $925 Million in Damages
4/18/19
By: Jennifer Lee On Friday, April 12, 2019, a federal jury in Oregon rendered a verdict in a certified class action that could leave ViSalus, Inc. on the hook for $925 million for making more than 1.85 million unsolicited robocalls in violation of the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (“TPCA”). The case is Wakefield v. ViSalus…
Bipartisan TRACED Act Enhances Penalties for Illegal Robocalls
12/7/18
By: Matt Foree U.S. Senator John Thune (R-S.D.), the chairman of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation, and Senator Ed Markey (D-Mass.), a member of the committee and author of the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (“TCPA”), recently announced the introduction of the Telephone Robocall Abuse Criminal Enforcement and Deterrence (“TRACED”) Act. Senator Roger…
Ninth Circuit Compounds ATDS Confusion in TCPA, Causing FCC to Seek Further Comment
10/8/18
By: Matt Foree As we previously discussed in the ACA International decision, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit recently rejected the Federal Communications Commission’s (“FCC”) guidance concerning the definition of automatic telephone dialing system (ATDS), one of the key components of liability in the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (“TCPA”). Among other things, the TCPA…
BREAKING – D.C. Circuit Sets Aside Key Portions of FCC Ruling in Long-Awaited TCPA Decision
3/20/18
By: Matthew N. Foree The United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit has finally issued its decision in the appeal of the Federal Communication Commission’s July 2015 Declaratory Order regarding the Telephone Consumer Protection Act. The industry has been anxiously awaiting this decision for over two years. The decision provides helpful…
Members of Congress Seek TCPA Revisions
8/18/14
By: Matthew N. Foree Ten members of Congress have recently submitted correspondence to the Chairman of the Federal Communications Commission (“FCC”) urging the FCC to revise the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (“TCPA”). They frame the issue at stake as “a significant hindrance to public and private business practices across our great nation due to outdated…
TCPA Class Action on Opt-Out Confirmation Text Messages Dismissed
7/15/13
By: Matt Foree A U.S. District Court in California recently dismissed a putative class action under the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA). See Holt v. Redbox Automated Retail, LLC, Case No. 11cv3046 (S.D. Cal. 2013). The matter concerned Defendant Redbox Automated Retail, LLC (Redbox) and its post opt-out confirmation text messages. The original plaintiff in…