On July 10, the Federal Communications Commission enacted major changes and clarifications to the Telephone Consumer Protection Act of 1991 (“TCPA”). Approved on a contentious 3-2 vote by the FCC commissioners, the FCC released its Declaratory Ruling and Order (FCC 15-72) (“the FCC’s Order”) formally stating its interpretation of numerous provisions of the
Spokeo-Based Stays Gaining Steam in Consumer Litigation
On April 27, 2015, the United States Supreme Court granted certiorari in Spokeo Inc. v. Robins to address the issue of whether Congress may confer Article III standing on a plaintiff who suffers no concrete harm by simply authorizing a private right of action based on the violation of a federal statute alone. Although the
Seventh Circuit Rules Hospital’s Actions are Not Subject to FCRA
In Tierney v. Advocate Health & Hosps. Corp. (No. 14-3168, 2015 U.S. App. LEXIS 13966 (Aug. 10, 2015)), the Seventh Circuit recently upheld a district court’s dismissal of a proposed class action accusing a hospital of violating the Fair Credit Reporting Act by failing to secure health data maintained on four desktop computers that
Seventh Circuit Opines that Rule 68 Offer Does Not Moot Suit
On August 6, the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that a defendant’s offer of full relief does not render a plaintiff’s claims moot. The case, Chapman v. First Index, Inc. (No. 14-2773, 2015 U.S. App. LEXIS 13767 (7th Cir. 2015)), was a junk fax case brought pursuant to the Telephone Consumer Protection Act
FACTA Class Action Filed Against Miami-Dade County and Its Software Provider
On August 7, a putative class action was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida by plaintiff Nataly Cano Lopez against Miami-Dade County for allegedly printing more than the allowed number of credit card digits on traffic ticket receipts. The complaint alleges that Miami-Dade and its software provider printed more
Eleventh Circuit Holds That Class Action Tolling Not Available for Subsequent Class Actions Even When First Case is Dismissed for Reasons Specific to Prior Named Plaintiff
On August 3, the Eleventh Circuit held in Ewing Industries Corporation v. Bob Wines Nursery, Inc., et al., that a proposed class action accusing a Florida nursery of sending unsolicited faxes did not suspend the statute of limitations for a later-filed proposed class action challenging that same conduct, despite the fact that the
Putative FACTA Class Action Moves Forward Against J. Crew
On August 4, a New Jersey federal judge denied a motion to dismiss a putative class action against J. Crew Group involving allegations of Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act violations for printing more than the last five digits of consumers’ credit card numbers on sales receipts. The named plaintiff alleged that J. Crew violated
11th Circ. Strikes Back At Untimely ‘Piggyback’ Class Actions
Suppose that you have been successful in defeating a proposed class action. The glow of success begins to fade, however, when your client is hit with another putative class action by a member of the first class. Worse yet, that second class claim looks like one that should be barred by the statute of limitations,
Federal Indictments Issued for Individuals Skimming Michaels Credit Cards
On July 30, federal prosecutors in New Jersey filed criminal indictments against two California residents for stealing credit and debit card information from over 90,000 Michaels Stores locations in 19 states. According to the indictments, the individuals skimmed the customers’ card account information for purposes of generating counterfeit bank cards and withdrawing cash from the
California Supreme Court Upholds Validity of Standard Auto Sale Arbitration Clause
On August 3, to the relief of car dealerships and auto finance companies, the California Supreme Court upheld a standard arbitration clause from an automotive purchase agreement by a 6-1 majority decision in Sanchez v. Valencia Holding Co., LLC, which reversed both the trial court and Court of Appeal’s rulings invalidating the entire arbitration