On March 20, 2020 the FCC issued a Declaratory Ruling specifically outlining how calls and messages will be treated under the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (“TCPA”) with regard to the novel coronavirus (“COVID-19”). In its sua sponte Declaratory Ruling, The FCC exempted certain calls related to the COVID-19 pandemic from TCPA requirements – but only
The Supreme Court of Appeals of West Virginia issued an administrative order on Sunday, March 22 that covers public health and safety concerns related to the coronavirus (“COVID-19”). In it, the Court recognizes “the current COVID-19 crisis creates an unprecedented public health emergency that requires immediate action to encourage effective social distancing and reduce the
In light of the coronavirus (“COVID-19”) and its impact on business operations, it is important to be aware that Telephone Consumer Protection Act restrictions on calling or texting consumers for a commercial purpose still apply. These national restrictions include rules governing consent to contact cellular telephones and rules regarding revocation of consent. Moreover, certain
Applying the definition of an automatic telephone dialing system required by the recent Eleventh Circuit decision Glasser v. Hilton Grand Vacations Co., LLC, Judge Charlene Honeywell from the United States District Court for the Middle District of Florida held in Northrup v. Innovative Health Ins. Partners, LLC, et al., that the Twilio
In Meier v. Allied Interstate, LLC, Judge Gonzalo P. Curial found that while LiveVox HCI could store numbers as required by the Telephone Consumer Protection Act, because each call required human intervention, it did not qualify as an automatic telephone dialing system within the definition of the TCPA.
Plaintiff Richard Meier brought an action
In Johnson v. Comodo Group, the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey denied the defendant’s motion for summary judgment on two key issues in a claim asserting violations of the Telephone Consumer Protection Act, finding that a predictive dialer qualifies as an automatic telephone dialing system under the statute and
On February 4, the Federal Communications Commission issued seven letters to certain United States phone companies that provide gateway service for international robocalls into stateside networks, directing them to cooperate in tracing back those calls. The companies are used as gateways into the United States for robocalls that originate overseas; thus, are uniquely situated to
On Friday, February 21, the United States Supreme Court released its April calendar, scheduling arguments for the final session of this term. In doing so, the Supreme Court put a crucial Telephone Consumer Protection Act case – Barr v. American Association of Political Consultants – on the docket for April 22. Barr involves a
The United States District Court for the District of Idaho in Dorfman v. Albertson’s, LLC recently granted a Telephone Consumer Protection Act defendant’s motion to deny class certification – not once, but twice – based on the emergency purposes exception to TCPA liability. This exception does not require prior consent to receive autodialed calls or
The U.S. Chamber of Commerce and a number of other groups that represent financial institutions, health care companies, insurance companies, and retail outlets sent a letter to Secretary of the Federal Communications Commission Marlene H. Dortch on February 5, asking the FCC “to clarify expeditiously” the definition of an automatic telephone dialing system under the
