SPB’s Unprecedented Podcast

Another AMAZING episode, this one featuring a true American innovator-- David King, the inventor of VoApps ringless voicemail technology. David joins us to discuss VoApps' technology and its recent efforts to assist Defendants sued in TCPA suits. Its a strong move by VoApps considering that litigation surrounding the TCPA propriety of its technology is ongoing.   Before the interview we break down the biggest TCPA news from the last week, including: That terrible and scary Morgan decision holding that even manual calls can trigger the TCPA's ATDS provisions; The huge certification denial in Chinitz casting doubt on whether popular TCPA suits against real estate brokerages based on calls by individual agents can proceed on a classwide basis;  and of course; We breakdown all the best arguments as to why ringless voicemails are (probably) not subject to the TCPA. Yet another Unprecedented TCPA experience coming your way! Host: The Czar Cast:   Archduke, Grand Duchess

Well we're back folks and you cannot miss this.   Dusting off the fun and sun of summer, the TCPAWorld team is back in action. We breakdown all the big TCPA developments over the last few months, including: The passage of TRACED and Stopping Bad Robocalls Act in the Senate and House respectively, and the gap between the two statutes and how Congress might ultimately harmonize these enactments to get to a final Anti-Robocall Bill; The Supreme Court's battle for the soul of legislative power in this nation, using the TCPA as its pawn-- and what it may mean for future TCPA rulings handed down by regulatory agencies; We review the ATDS landscape and discuss why it really looks like a true majority position is developing surrounding the definition of the ATDS; and We breakdown the Eleventh Circuit's huge ruling in Salcedo holding that unwanted text messages do not necessarily cause concrete injury for Article III standing--including an analysis of what makes Salcedo difference from other Spokeo decisions. And then we get to the incredible interview with Margaret Daum.  What a hitter! Margaret spent over a decade conducting sensitive and high-profile congressional investigations on the hill. She was actually part of the powerful Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations. My goodness– who better to help guide us through the process of these two bills (TRACED and SBRA) merging together to become one–and how best to get me (the Czar) to testify before Congress. (And who better to help guide you through any sticky Congressional investigation in the extremely unfortunate event you or someone you love (or work for) gets sucked into one.) Per usual this episode of Unprecedented is jam-packed, fast-moving TCPA excitement. Enjoy! Host: The Czar Cast:   Archduke, Duchess

Rebekah Johnson, the visionary CEO and foudner of Numeracle, explains how callers are now at the mercy of phone carrier analytics and cannot expect their calls to go through without help. That's where Numeracle comes in. Rebekah and the Czar dive deep into the FCC's new default call-blocking rules,  addressing the contours of the brave new world we now inhabit in which carriers may wield tremendous power over which calls do and do not connect.  Rebekah explains why there's a real risk that legitimate callers--particularly debt collectors-- are at risk of being frozen out. Before we get to the interview, however, the team breaks down the biggest TCPA news of the week, including a recent decision determining when a call is actually "made" under the TCPA, a critical new case out of Florida holding that contractual consent is irrevocable, and the Sixth Circuit's smack down of a bid by a lawyer to bring repeat claims for calls to a landline phone. Host: The Czar Cast:  Knight, Jester,  Archduke, Grand Duchess

Abbas Kazerounian – the “Godfather” of TCPA class actions – breaks down California’s new privacy act – the CCPA. Abbas helped draft the statute and, as one of the most feared consumer litigators in the nation, plans to use it to good effect. You simply cannot miss his insights in this area. Of course, as one of the country’s leaders in defending consumer class actions in the privacy space, you can also count on us to bring you 360 degree analysis and coverage of CCPA developments – and this interview with Abbas is just the start. But don’t worry TCPAWorld, we didn’t spend the entire interview talking about CCPA. I also take Abbas to task on First Amendment issues and the remarkable fact that consumer lawyers are chipping away at our constitutional rights by advocating for a watered-down version of strict scrutiny in TCPA cases. As I argue to Abbas– the precedent created in these cases damages the First Amendment landscape for all of us in every context. Abbas fights back hard at times, but even he sees the inherent danger of eroding our Constitutional protections in the name of stopping robocalls. Before we get to the interview we breakdown Commissioner O’Reilly’s big speech–and how best to leverage it–and of course you cannot miss our take on the TRACED Act. We break it down and explain exactly what to expect if (and when!) the bill becomes law. Host: The Czar Cast:   Archduke, Grand Duchess

If there is one firm that has cashed in the most from the explosion of TCPA litigation over the last few years it is surely Morgan & Morgan.   Billing themselves as the largest plaintiff’s law firm in the world, Morgan & Morgan’s aggressive consumer protection department has boasted nearly 10% of all TCPA filings over the last 4 years. Their lawyers have single-handedly made the Middle District of Florida ground zero for the TCPA explosion and have recently expanded their footprint into Georgia, Tennessee and even far flung jurisdictions like Michigan and California. And as the firm transitions toward a greater focus on class litigation the near “limits” resources available to Morgan & Morgan make it a dangerous “go the distance” adversary that everyone needs to take seriously. In a revealing interview with the head of Morgan & Morgan’s consumer protection department– Tav Gomez– the Unprecedented podcast team unpackages all the big TCPA developments and explore the consumer bar’s perspective on matters such as the ATDS definition and the impact of AAPC, striking down part of the TCPA. Host: The Czar Cast:   Czarina, Archduke, Grand Duchess Topics: 2:30– Revtich v. Citibank— We beak down the big wrong number TCPA class action denial. 12:04— With two new petitions seeking reconsideration of the FCC’s reassigned number database now pending, when can we expect a roll out? 20:00— AAPC v. FCC! We break down this huge new ruling striking down federally-backed debt exemption as unconstitutional  26:38—  Interview with Tav Gomez and Frank Kerney of Morgan & Morgan

The fourth episode of Unprecedented is completely jammed packed.  First, former Rep. Joe Crowley (D. N.Y.)– a man who spent many of his 20 years in Congress as part of Democratic leadership– joined the Unprecedented podcast IN STUDIO this week. We discussed his rise into politics, his time in Congress and his decision to join Squire Patton Boggs. Most importantly, however, he gives us an expert-eye view of TRACED–the startling expansion of the TCPA working its way swiftly through Congress— and explains how SPB’s policy team can assist clients interested in assuring that their concerns about the enactment are heard–before it is too late.   Then we talk with Yitzchak Zelman — the biggest name in TCPAWorld that you may not have ever heard (or know how to pronounce.) He was lead counsel for Mr. Reyes in Reyes v. Lincoln Financial Services. He was lead counsel for Ms. Pinkus in Pinkus v. Siruis XM Radio.  And he partly avenged those losses in his big recent wins in Jiminez– rejecting a good faith defense for wrong number phone calls— and N.L. v. Credit One— a trial victory, the first of his career. Host: The Czar Cast:   Czarina, Archduke Topics: Legislative update– 2:36 Third Circuit Court of Appeal rejecting the “pretext” approach to evaluating telemarketing for TCPA purposes– 7:31 Interview with rep. Joe Crowley (D. N.Y.)– 11:00 Interview with Yitzchak Zelman– 40:34

The third episode of Unprecedented is absolutely groundbreaking as we speak with the CEOs of the two most recognized robocall tracking indexes in the world– Alex Quilici of YouMail (publisher of the Robocall Index) and Alex Algard of Hiya (publisher of the Robocall Radar.) In a remarkable first-of-its-kind exchange, these CEOs hash out what a robocall really is, how tracking consumer behavior can help us better understand the scale and appropriate response to the robocall epidemic, and how advances in technology and sophisticated algorithms are being leveraged in the private sector to bring an end to this catastrophic robocall rise. We also fact-check the statements made by the NCLC regarding robocall volumes to Congress in an interview recorded the same day the testimony took place.  Wow!   Host: The Czar Cast:   Grand Duchess, Duchess,  Countess Topics: Court enforces arbitration agreement on behalf of a non-signatory– 3:17 A massive multi-source collection class action is certified— is TCPAWorld changed forever? — 6:50 Marks creeps into the First Circuit Court of Appeal footprint as a court in Mass recognizes that dialing from a list equates to ATDS usage–  14:27 Interview with YouMail and Hiya CEOs to discuss Robocall Index and Robocall Radar and break down robocall tracking approach— 37:45

The second episode of Unprecedented breaks more new ground with a break down of the FCC ATDS compromise. If your organization has a call center or outreach program, you simply can’t afford to miss the valuable insights you can glean from this candid discussion with TCPA mass-filer Todd Friedman. Host: The Czar Cast:  Knight, Archduke, Duchess,  Countess Topics: Court holds that random and sequential number generation is needed for ATDS usage in text context. (Gadelhak v. AT&T Servs., No. 17-cv-01559 (March 29, 2019)– 3:09 What is the standard for willfulness under the TCPA and what evidence meets that standard? (N.L. v. Credit One Bank, N.A., 2019 U.S. Dist. Lexis 64622, No. 2:17-cv-01512-JAM-DB, decided March 29, 2019.) — 9:24 How was a virtual number provider held liable for a TCPA violation for calls it did not make?– 15:32 Can wrong number callers rely on the consent of a prior subscriber to a number? One new case says yes. We break it down.- 25:25 New ATDS compromise position pitched to the FCC. Will it break the logjam? Here’s why it should.–  31:10 Interview with Firestarter Todd Friedman— 37:45

In our first ever Unprecedented episode we break down TRACED, PDR Resources, Schaevitz, Khs Corp, and Jay Edelson joins our podcast to predict a nine-figure TCPA settlement–and so much more. You can’t miss this first-ever episode of the Unprecedented podcast. Host: The Czar Cast:  Grand Duchess, Czarina, Knight, Archduke, Duchess Topics: Ringless voicemails subject to TCPA (Schaevitz v. Braman Hyundai, Inc., Case No. 1:17-cv-23890-KMM, 2019 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 48906 (S.D. Fl. March 25, 2019)) — 6:28 Officer liability for TCPA violations (Khs Corp. v. Singer Fin. Corp., Case No. 16-55, 2019 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 50089 (E.D. Pa. March 26, 2019)) — 11:55 PDR Resources deference fight at Supreme Court— 16:27 TRACED Act Update— 25:16 Proper objections (Compressor Eng’g Corp. v. Mfrs. Fin. Corp., No. 09-14444, 2019 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 48573 (E.D. Mich. Mar. 25, 2019))–  29:10 Interview with the Boogey Man Jay Edelson— 31:15