Last month, in Duguid v. Facebook, Inc., 17-15320, 2019 WL 2454853 (9th Cir. June 13, 2019), the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit (“Ninth Circuit”) held that the debt collection exception to the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (“TCPA”), 47 U.S.C. § 227(b)(1)(A)(iii), violates the First Amendment because it is content-based and fails to pass strict scrutiny review. Duguid is not a Facebook user and did not consent to be contacted by Facebook. Duguid alleged that Facebook violated the TCPA in 2014 by sending text message notifications to his cell phone ...
Although courts across the country agree that “a plaintiff class should not be certified unless membership therein is ‘adequately defined and clearly ascertainable,’” the extent of what a plaintiff must provide to satisfy this “implicit requirement” to certification varies among circuit courts. See Ocwen Loan Servicing, LLC v. Belcher, No. 18-90011, 2018 WL 3198552, at *3 (11th Cir. June 29, 2018) (citations omitted). For example, some circuit courts have construed the requirement to “mean[] a plaintiff must demonstrate an ‘administratively feasible’ ...
Ford v. Bluestem Brands, Inc., No. 18 CV 2695 (VB), 2019 WL 1046367 (S.D.N.Y. March 4, 2019)
Defendant provided Plaintiff with a $300 line of credit Plaintiff used to purchase a laptop from Defendant. Plaintiff claimed he received a letter from Defendant canceling his order, never received the laptop and Defendant could not prove he did. When Defendant sought to collect payment for the laptop, Plaintiff allegedly told Defendant he never received it, disputed the payment and required all future communications be by mail. Plaintiff claimed that despite this notification, he received ...
Reassigned NumbersSteward v. Credit One Bank, N.A., No. 16-173 (PAM/ECW), 2018 WL 5921652 (D. Minn. Nov. 13, 2018)
By: Joshua H. Threadcraft
Plaintiff filed suit alleging Defendant violated the TCPA by calling his recently assigned cell phone number 140 times to collect debt from another, including leaving 4 prerecorded messages. Defendant moved for summary judgment arguing that: (1) Its phone system was not an Automatic Telephone Dialing System (ATDS); and (2) It was reasonable to rely on consent from the previous subscriber when calling Plaintiff.
With respect to the first ...
Gaza v. Auto Glass America, LLC, No. 8:17-cv-1811-T-27AEP, 2018 WL 5775915 (M.D. Fla. Nov. 2, 2018)
Plaintiff alleged that he received five text messages, asserting claims for violation of the TCPA. Defendant moved for summary judgment, contending Plaintiff failed to produce evidence establishing that an ATDS was used to send the text messages. The Court began its analysis, noting that to succeed on his claim, Plaintiff must establish Defendant sent the text messages using an ATDS and that "[t]he essential function of an ATDS is 'the capacity to dial numbers without human ...
Wilkes v. CareSource Management Group Co., No. 4:16-cv-38 JVB, 2018 WL 4680028 (N.D. Ind. Sept. 29, 2018)
Plaintiff husband and wife applied for health insurance coverage under the Affordable Care Act through the Health Insurance Marketplace at healthcare.gov ("Marketplace"). In their online application, Plaintiffs provided the wife's cellular telephone number, which the website disclosed could be shared with insurance companies providing insurance plans. When consumers select a plan and submit an application to Marketplace, their application and contact information ...
In Gonzalez v. Ocwen Loan Servicing, LLC, No. 5:18-cv-340-Oc-30PRL, 2018 WL 4217065 (M.D. Fla. Sept. 5, 2018), the Middle District of Florida determined that the D.C. Circuit's opinion in ACA International v. FCC, 885 F.3d 687 (D.C. Cir. 2018) [hereinafter "ACA"], vacated the Federal Communications Commission's ("FCC") 2003, 2008, and 2015 Orders interpreting the definition of an automatic telephone dialing system ("ATDS").
The plaintiff, Wilfredo Gonzalez ("Plaintiff"), alleged that Ocwen Loan Servicing, LLC ("Ocwen") used an ATDS to place approximately 500 calls to his ...
Medley v. Dish Network, LLC, Case No. 8:16-cv-3534-36TBM, 2018 WL 4092120 (M.D. Fla. Aug. 27, 2018)
Joining a host of courts across the county, the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida recently ruled that contractual prior express consent to be called cannot be unilaterally revoked. The basis for the Court's holding was that Plaintiff entered into an Agreement with Defendant, incorporating a Customer Agreement providing that:
By signing below, you authorize [Defendant], and any debt collection agency or debt collection attorney hired by [Defendant], to contact ...
Harris v. Navient Solutions, LLC, No. 3:15-cv-546, 2018 WL 3748155 (D. Conn. Aug. 7, 2018)
Plaintiff signed promissory notes to secure student loans in which she provided her telephone number, agreed to update Defendant if her number changed and to the following clause:
"This Note may be modified only if you put the modification in writing and the modification is agreed to by any borrower or cosigner . . . I understand that you may use automated telephone dialing equipment or an artificial or prerecorded voice message to contact me in connection with this loan or loan application. You may ...
Few v. Receivables Performances Management, No. 1:17-cv-2038-KOB, 2018 WL 3772863 (N.D. Ala. Aug. 9, 2018)
The Telephone Consumer Protection Act, 47 U.S.C. §227 (TCPA), prohibits calls to cellular telephones using an Automatic Telephone Dialing System (ATDS), artificial or prerecorded voice. But calls made with prior express consent do not violate the Act. Plaintiff alleged Defendant violated the Act by calling her cell phone at least 184 times using an ATDS after she revoked prior express consent to be called. Defendant moved for summary judgment, arguing that Plaintiff could ...