TCPA Class Action Granted

On March 14, 2013, Plaintiffs filed suit against Amicus Mediation & Arbitration Group, accusing them of sending over 5,000 unsolicited advertisements via fax in violation of the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (“TCPA”). Kaye v Amicus Mediation & Arbitration Group, No. 3-13-cv-347, 2014 WL 2207431 (D. Conn. May 28, 2014). Defendants obtained Plaintiffs’ fax numbers through various sources including online searches and directories. The Complaint alleged that Plaintiffs never granted express consent to receive the advertisements. In certain messages, the fax allegedly failed to include a proper Opt-Out Notice; hence Plaintiffs were unable to send requests to Defendants to cease the faxes.

On May 28, 2014, the Court denied Defendants’ Motion to Dismiss and granted Rule 23 class action certification on behalf of Plaintiffs. Fed. R. Civ. P. 23. The Court held that there were several factors in the case that favored resolution of the matter on a class-wide basis. In order to encourage individual Plaintiffs to enforce their rights under the TCPA, the Court declared that class certification better promoted the class members’ interest. Specifically, since statutory damages available on an individual basis are modest, individuals have a lower incentive to pursue separate private actions. Therefore, the Court decided that Plaintiffs’ claims are better addressed through class certification in TCPA cases.

The lawyers at Fitapelli & Schaffer, LLP, view this decision as a victory for future Plaintiffs in TCPA cases and invite you to contact our firm if you believe you have been a victim of persistent telemarketers. For more information, please call us at (212) 300-0375 to schedule your free consultation.