Seventh Circuit Holds TCPA Prohibits Automated Calls to Cell Phones without Consent from Current Subscriber

Privacy/Cyber Risk & Data Security

On May 11, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit held that the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) requires consent from a current cell phone subscriber to receive automated calls – even if a former subscriber to the same number had previously given consent to be contacted. Soppet v. Enhanced Recovery Company, LLC, No. 11-3819, 2012 WL 1650485 (7th Cir. May 11, 2012). The court affirmed a district court decision certifying a class of consumers who alleged that their cell phones were automatically dialed in violation of TCPA. The defendant debt collectors argued that it was not a violation of the TCPA to call a cell phone number if a previous subscriber to that number had given the consent required by the TCPA because the previous subscriber was the “intended recipient” of the call. The court rejected this argument because, even though the TCPA does not define who the “called party” is that must consent to be contacted, its use throughout the TCPA indicates that “called party" refers to the currently subscribed cell phone user, and not to any previous user.