TCPA Vicarious Liability: It Is About Control [telecom]

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by David O. Klein

Recently, an Arizona federal district court dismissed Telephone Consumer Protection Act ("TCPA") claims against a Florida-based cruise ship company. The Court based its decision on the plaintiff's failure to prove that the cruise ship company either sent the allegedly offending text messages itself or had an agent send them on its behalf. This latter, agency-based, theory of liability is known as TCPA vicarious liability, a legal theory where a company may be held responsible for text messages (or certain telephone calls) that third parties send (or place) for them.