Phone call recording laws vary throughout the country, with each state dictating its rules about whether or not everyone on a call must give consent or if only one party’s consent is required. This means that in some places, companies cannot record phone calls without consent from the consumers they’re calling.

California, according to execvision.com, is considered an all-party (also known as dual party) consent state, meaning that every party to a conversation must give explicit consent before the conversation can be recorded.

Is it Really Illegal to Record Phone Calls Without Consent in California?

Section 632 of the state penal code says that recording conversations when either party is on a cordless or mobile phone without a warning is against the law.

California is unique in that it makes a distinction between mobile devices and cordless phones, something most other states do not.

How Do Companies Warn That a Call is Being Recorded?

Some companies will use a verbal statement or a recording explaining that by remaining on the line, a consumer is giving consent to be recorded. However, recording laws in California also allow for the use of a faint beep or tone throughout the call to indicate that the call is being recorded. All parties on the call must be able to audibly detect this beep or tone.

Because of California’s strict call recording laws, most companies that do business in the state will include this disclosure even though it may not be applicable to callers in other states. This is a precaution meant to guard against lawsuits brought by California consumers who had calls illegally recorded. Californians who have called a Romano’s Macaroni Grill may have been recorded without their knowledge or consent.

Are There Any Exceptions to Call Recording?

There are very limited exceptions to the call recording laws in California. One  exception to the two party consent rule is when there is no reasonable expectation of privacy. Slate explains that public speeches and legislative hearings, for example, would not give a person a reasonable expectation of privacy so consent would not have to necessarily be obtained to record at these events.

If you have reason to believe your call was illegally recorded, you can take legal action. Many companies, such as Romano’s Macaroni Grill, have been accused of illegally recording calls.

Companies cannot record phone calls without consent in the state of California. If you have evidence of a company that is violating the record phone calls without consent law, you can collect this evidence and present it to an experienced attorney.  Take note of the time of the call, the number you called or were contacted on, and the names of any people you spoke you.

It’s likely that your attorney might also ask you what indication you might have that the call was recorded without your consent, too.