In a unanimous en banc judgment, the Eleventh U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals reversed its previous jurisprudence, holding that the receipt of a solitary text message is enough grounds to establish Article III standing in respect to a Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) lawsuit. This compelling development was reported by Manatt, Phelps & Phillips, LLP. (JD Supra)
The decision represents a significant shift from the court’s earlier position, giving plaintiffs a chance to file suits based on what would previously have been considered insufficient grounds. Previously, individuals receiving one-off text messages were often denied the requisite legal ground to file a TCPA claim. With the ruling, the Eleventh Circuit joins regions such as the Second, Sixth, and Ninth Circuits, where receipt of a single unsolicited text message has been considered sufficient to establish standing for a TCPA suit.
Article III of the U.S Constitution prohibits federal courts from hearing cases in circumstances where plaintiffs have no standing – they have not suffered some kind of ascertainable loss due to a defendant’s action. The rationale behind this is to prevent the judicial system from getting sucked into unnecessary or hypothetical disputes.
The TCPA, on the other hand, is a statute that seeks to protect consumers from unwanted calls or text messages. It provides a cause of action for text or call recipients who did not give prior consent to the sender.
This legal evolution may have considerable implications, especially for corporations that rely heavily on text message marketing. With this new mandate affording consumers greater protection, businesses may need to re-evaluate their communication strategies to significantly limit potential litigation exposure.