Sprint TCPA Class Action Lawsuit Experiences Difficulties

A Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) class action lawsuit was filed against Sprint Spectrum LP after the company allegedly made multiple unsolicited phone calls to customers. The Seventh Circuit Appeals Court, however, decided that the claims must be resolved in arbitration.

Background on Sprint TCPA Class Action Lawsuit

Named plaintiffs Ronald and Anna A. filed the Sprint TCPA class action lawsuit after allegedly receiving many unwanted cell phone calls from the company or one of its affiliates, informing them about potential phone services. Ronald and Ana were previously received their phone service from U.S. Cellular before Sprint bought the company. Allegedly, Sprint told the consumers that they were ending their services set up by U.S. Cellular and informed them about new offers through Sprint.

Plaintiffs argued in the TCPA class action lawsuit that Sprint Solutions Inc. was the new owner of their account under U.S. Cellular, not Sprint Spectrum. However, the Seventh Circuit Appeals Court stated that Sprint Solutions was Sprint Spectrum’s agent for all U.S. Cellular contracts which were now under Sprint. This means that the dispute should be settled in arbitration according to their contract.

The plaintiffs had signed up for a renewable contract with U.S. Cellular in 2008. This contract included a clause stating that any disputes would be solved in arbitration. Sprint bought U.S. Cellular in 2013 without informing the plaintiffs.

As the Appeal Court Circuit Judge wrote, “What would Sprint have done if forbidden to call the customers whom it had inherited from U.S. Cellular and must now terminate because of technical incompatibility?…Post the messages in the ad sections of newspapers? In television commercials?” according to the TCPA class action lawsuit.

Sprint allegedly made multiple unsolicited phone calls to the plaintiffs informing them about their contract end and the new services they could get through Sprint. From Sprint’s perspective, they were informing their customers that their service would be ending in Jan. 2014 due to technical incompatibility.

Sprint continued to make what was viewed as unsolicited phone calls even after the plaintiffs switched phone service providers.

Initially, the Sprint TCPA class action lawsuit made some headway when a lower court decided that the complaints were valid because Sprint’s alleged TCPA violations were made after the contract expired. However, the Seventh Circuit Appeals Court’s decision to arbitrate was made because the initial contract allowed Sprint to make such contact to U.S. Cellular customers.

TCPA Class Action Lawsuits

Many individuals such as Ronald and Ana have filed TCPA class action lawsuits after companies allegedly committed TCPA violations. TCPA violations include any company making unsolicited phone calls or text messages or using an automatic telephone dialing system to make these calls unless express consent was given by the recipient.

Although the dispute in this Sprint TCPA class action lawsuit will be resolved out of court, many other TCPA lawsuits have been successful in helping plaintiffs win compensation for TCPA violations.

Join a Free TCPA Class Action Lawsuit Investigation

If you were contacted on your cell phone by a company via an unsolicited text message (text spam) or prerecorded voice message (robocall), you may be eligible for compensation under the Telephone Consumer Protection Act.

Get a Free Case Evaluation Now