Troutman Sanders LLP Quoted in Law360 Article Discussing Supreme Court’s Decision to Grant Review of TCPA Class Action
Posted: Thu Dec 26, 2024 6:12 am
Partners Virginia B. Flynn, Chad R. Fuller, and Alan D. Wingfield of Troutman Sanders LLP are mentioned in a March 22 Law360 article regarding the United States Supreme Court’s decision to grant review of PDR Network v. Carlton & Harris Chiropractic, a Telephone Consumer Protection Act class action.
PDR Network is a company that sells healthcare products to doctors and other healthcare providers and is known for publishing the Physicians’ Desk Reference, a popular reference book with information on band data various prescription drugs. Carlton & Harris Chiropractic is a West Virginia chiropractic office. In December 2013, PDR sent by fax to Carlton & Harris an advertisement for a free e-book version of the 2014 Physicians’ Desk Reference.
Carlton & Harris sued PDR in the Southern District of West Virginia for violation of the TCPA, which prohibits unsolicited advertisements sent to fax machines. Under the TCPA, a recipient of an unsolicited fax advertisement can sue the sender for damages and recover actual monetary loss or $500 in statutory damages for each violation. If a court finds the sender “willfully or knowingly violated” the TCPA, the recipient is entitled to triple damages.
PDR moved to dismiss the complaint, arguing the fax at issue did not constitute an advertisement as a matter of law since it did not offer a product or service for sale. The district court determined the fax was not an advertisement because PDR offered the e-book for free. Carlton & Harris argued the district court must, under the Hobbs Act, adopt the 2006 Order issued by the FCC, which offered interpretative guidance of the TCPA that would make “advertisements” encompass announcements of free products. Following the framework for deferring to administrative agencies, as set forth in Chevron USA v. NRDC, 467 U.S. 837 (1984), the Court refused to defer to the
PDR Network is a company that sells healthcare products to doctors and other healthcare providers and is known for publishing the Physicians’ Desk Reference, a popular reference book with information on band data various prescription drugs. Carlton & Harris Chiropractic is a West Virginia chiropractic office. In December 2013, PDR sent by fax to Carlton & Harris an advertisement for a free e-book version of the 2014 Physicians’ Desk Reference.
Carlton & Harris sued PDR in the Southern District of West Virginia for violation of the TCPA, which prohibits unsolicited advertisements sent to fax machines. Under the TCPA, a recipient of an unsolicited fax advertisement can sue the sender for damages and recover actual monetary loss or $500 in statutory damages for each violation. If a court finds the sender “willfully or knowingly violated” the TCPA, the recipient is entitled to triple damages.
PDR moved to dismiss the complaint, arguing the fax at issue did not constitute an advertisement as a matter of law since it did not offer a product or service for sale. The district court determined the fax was not an advertisement because PDR offered the e-book for free. Carlton & Harris argued the district court must, under the Hobbs Act, adopt the 2006 Order issued by the FCC, which offered interpretative guidance of the TCPA that would make “advertisements” encompass announcements of free products. Following the framework for deferring to administrative agencies, as set forth in Chevron USA v. NRDC, 467 U.S. 837 (1984), the Court refused to defer to the