Daniel JT McKenna

Subscribe to Daniel JT McKenna's Posts
Contact:Read more about Daniel JT McKenna

A unanimous panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit has ruled that text messages are not “prerecorded voice messages” for purposes of the Telephone Consumer Protection Act’s (TCPA) prohibition on using “an artificial or prerecorded voice” to make non-emergency calls to cell phone numbers without the called party’s consent.… Continue Reading

A unanimous panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit has ruled that a plaintiff who received only one ringless voicemail (RVM) had alleged a concrete injury sufficient to provide Article III standing to assert a claim under the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA).

In Dickson v.  Direct Energy LP, the plaintiff alleged that the defendant delivered multiple RVMs to his cell phone voicemail box in which the defendant advertised its services. … Continue Reading

In its 2016 decision in Spokeo v. Robins, the U.S. Supreme Court held that a plaintiff alleging a Fair Credit Reporting Act violation does not have standing under Article III of the U.S. Constitution to sue for statutory damages in federal court unless the plaintiff can show that he or she suffered “concrete,” “real” harm as a result of the violation.… Continue Reading

The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has issued a Report and Order and Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking that would impose new requirements for the blocking of text messages by mobile wireless providers and propose new limitations on senders of text messages.  The document has been circulated for consideration by the FCC at its March 2023 open meeting and the FCC’s ultimate resolution of the issues is subject to change.… Continue Reading

A Ninth Circuit panel affirmed the district court’s dismissal with prejudice of a class action complaint in which the plaintiff alleged that Meta Platforms, Inc. (Meta) violated the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) by sending unsolicited “Birthday Announcement” text messages to consumers’ cell phones.  Among other restrictions, the TCPA prohibits calls to cell phone numbers using an Automatic Telephone Dialing System (ATDS) without prior express consent. … Continue Reading

The Federal Communications Commission ruled this month that “ringless voicemail” to wireless phones is a “call” made using an artificial or prerecorded voice and therefore subject to the Telephone Consumer Protection Act robocall prohibition.  The TCPA prohibits making any non-emergency call using an automatic telephone dialing system or an artificial or prerecorded voice to a wireless telephone number without the prior express consent of the called party. … Continue Reading

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit has ruled that in determining whether a credit report is inaccurate or misleading under the Fair Credit Reporting Act’s “maximum possible accuracy” requirement, a district court should apply a “reasonable reader” standard.  Ballard Spahr attorneys are currently representing clients in cases involving this legal issue.… Continue Reading

On May 20, Oklahoma Governor Kevin Stitt signed into law House Bill No. 3168 which imposes new limits on the use of automated dialing systems.  The new law, titled the “Telephone Solicitation Act of 2022” (Act), takes effect on November 1, 2022.

The Act prohibits the use of an “automated system” to make a “commercial telephonic sales call” without the “prior express written consent” of the “called party.” … Continue Reading

Although several court decisions have held that ringless voicemails to a consumer’s cell phone constitute “calls” subject to the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) autodialer prohibition, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC)  has not yet officially weighed in on the question.  In 2017, a marketing company filed a petition with the FCC seeking a declaratory ruling that the technology was not subject to the TCPA but the petition was withdrawn.… Continue Reading

A bill was recently introduced in the Oklahoma legislature that would impose new limits on the use of automated dialing systems.  If enacted, the bill would become effective November 1, 2022.

Titled the “Telephone Solicitation Act of 2022,” the bill would prohibit the use of an “automated system” to make a “telephonic sales call” without the “prior express written consent” of the “called party.”… Continue Reading