The FCC is seeking comment regarding the definition of an “automatic telephone dialing system” (ATDS) following the recent decision of the U.S Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit in Marks v. Crunch San Diego, LLC. The Marks court examined the language of the TCPA and its underlying purpose and held that an ATDS is [...]
Less than two weeks ago, the Sixth Circuit became the first circuit court to consider whether a TCPA claim survives the plaintiff’s death. In Parchman v. SLM Corp., the district court held that TCPA claims are penal in nature; therefore, they do not survive a plaintiff’s death. The Sixth Circuit reversed that decision. Under federal common [...]
Over the past several years, callers have increasingly used a technology known as “ringless voicemail” or “direct-to-voicemail drops” to contact consumers. The technology allows companies to deposit recorded messages directly into a consumer’s voicemail (on the carrier’s server) without causing the consumer’s phone to ring. The consumer receives only an indicator that a voicemail is [...]
As expected, 2018 is developing into a significant year for the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA). In March, the D.C. Circuit issued an opinion in ACA Int’l v. FCC, setting aside portions of the FCC’s 2015 TCPA Order. In May, the FCC responded by soliciting comments on how various TCPA provisions should be interpreted in [...]
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has filed a complaint in federal court seeking to stop two telemarketing operations and their principals for allegedly facilitating billions of illegal robocalls to consumers nationwide. Commenting on this action, FTC Bureau of Consumer Protection Director Andrew Smith advised that “we will go after not only robocallers, but also companies [...]
The Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) requires “prior express consent” for non-marketing calls and texts made using an automatic telephone dialing system (ATDS) or prerecorded message. The TCPA further specifies that for transactional text messages and calls using an ATDS or prerecorded message, “persons who knowingly release their phone numbers have in effect given their [...]
Last month we discussed whether, in the wake of ACA Int’l v. FCC and the subsequent district court ruling in Marshall, a predictive dialer still qualifies as an ATDS. The answer depends, in part, on whether ACA Int’l invalidates the FCC’s 2003 and 2008 predictive dialer rulings (in addition to its 2015 TCPA Order). Two [...]
FCC Chairman Ajit Pai has accepted the recommendations of the North American Numbering Council (NANC) to institute a governance authority to oversee implementation of the SHAKEN/STIR protocols. The FCC and NANC hope the framework will help fight robocalls and spoofed numbers by providing procedures to authenticate caller ID information associated with telephone calls. SHAKEN/STIR is [...]
Last week, the D.C. Circuit’s decision in ACA Int’l v. FCC, which set aside portions of the FCC’s 2015 TCPA Order, became effective. The FCC wasted little time reopening the underlying proceedings. Through this Public Notice, the FCC seeks comment on the interpretation of the TCPA in light of the D.C. Circuit’s decision. In particular, [...]
The Federal Communications Commission (“FCC”) made good on its proposed $120 million fine against Adrian Abramovich, an infamous caller who, as we previously reported, made over 96 million robocalls to sell timeshares and other vacation packages. The calls purported to be from Marriott, Expedia, TripAdvisor and other well-known companies, but when the consumer “pressed 1” [...]
