TCPA Plaintiff Richard Zelma Ordered to Explain Quotes Which Don’t Exist
In a July 14th decision, a federal judge in New Jersey ordered pro se litigant Richard Zelma to explain why his brief in a TCPA case contained numerous quotes that did not exist in the actual court decisions he cited. Zelma v. Wonder Group, Inc, No. 25cv3232, Lexis 135885, (U.S. Dist. N.J July 14, 2025). […]
What the FTC thinks “clear and conspicuous” means for TSR enforcement
The Telemarketing Sales Rule (“TSR”) and Telephone Consumer Protection Act (“TCPA”) both require various disclosures to consumers, either during calls or texts, like the price of goods purchased, or before, e.g. that the consumer is consenting to be contacted by a business. These disclosures are required to be “clear and conspicuous”, but that standard is […]
Court Rules Serial Plaintiff Cannot Act Both As Plaintiff and Class Counsel
In Todd C. Bank v. Dimension Service Corporation, the judge considered Plaintiff Todd C. Bank’s motion to dismiss several affirmative defenses brought by the Defendant in response to Bank’s TCPA class action. Bank v. Dimension Serve. Corp., No. 1:23-cv-2467, 2023 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 230814 (E.D.N.Y. Dec. 29, 2023). Defendant argued that “the putative class should […]
Court Rules the FCC Did Not Have to Give a Citation Prior to Imposing a $120 Million Fine for Violation of TCPA Caller ID Rules
On December 27, 2023, a federal court in Florida ruled that the Federal Communications Commission (“FCC”) did not have to issue a citation (i.e., a formal warning) to an individual prior to fining him $120 million for making more than 96 million spoofed robocalls to consumers during 2016. See United States v. Abramovich, No. 23-21723, […]
Which Law Applies when an Area Code Does Not Match the Call Recipient’s Location?
For many years, we have advised our clients to comply with the most restrictive call monitoring disclosure laws (all-party consent) because area code does not determine location in the era widespread mobile phone use. Thus, even if a telephone number has a Missouri area code (which is a one-party consent state), a plaintiff could, and […]
Federal Trade Commission 2023 Fiscal Year “Do-not-call” Registry Data
The Federal Trade Commission has released its 2023 fiscal year “do-not-call” registry data. See https://www.ftc.gov/news-events/news/press-releases/2023/11/ftc-releases-annual-do-not-call-registry-data-book-showing-consumer-complaints-continued-decrease. It notes consumer “do-not-call” and robocall complaints have decreased to a five-year low. The list now contains 249 million phone numbers, up from 246.8 million last year. Almost 2,000 organizations pay for full access to the list, while almost 8,000 […]
Plaintiffs at it Again with Silly Opt-Out Language
A court has ordered arbitration in a case brought by a plaintiff who replied “S T O P” with spaces between each letter instead of “STOP” with no spaces, purportedly to opt out of text messages from the defendant. Johnson v. Whaleco, Inc., No. 5:23-cv-00403 (M.D. Fla. Sept. 27, 2023). The court ordered arbitration because […]
Florida court allows claim against Telecom company to continue alleging it knowingly transmitted fraudulent calls to residents
In Office of the Attorney General v. Smartbiz Telecom, LLC, the Florida Attorney General alleged SmartBiz transmitted fraudulent calls despite being notified more than 250 times that its network was being used for illegal calls. Smartbiz, No. 1:22-cv-23945-JEM, 2023 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 148989 (S.D. Fla. Aug. 23, 2023). The court agreed with the Attorney General […]
Supreme Court ruling highlights importance of linking to terms & conditions that include arbitration language in TCPA disclosure
In a win for defendants facing class action lawsuits under the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA), the Supreme Court held that when a federal district court denies a motion to compel arbitration, the district court must stay, i.e., pause all pre-trial and trial proceedings while the losing party appeals the decision to the appellate court. […]
Oregon has modified its “do-not-call” law to specifically provide for “accomplice liability”
Oregon has enacted a law (HB 2759) that specifically assesses penalties to entities which know or consciously avoid knowing of businesses that violate state or federal “do-not-call” laws and provide substantial assistance or support to the violator. The Telemarketing Sales Rule (“TSR”) enforced by the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) has long used the same standard […]