FTC and Several States Announce Crackdown on Student Loan Debt Relief Scams

The FTC, 11 states, and the District of Columbia have announced a coordinated effort involving 36 different enforcement actions aimed at shutting down alleged student debt relief scams. "The agency alleges that the defendants in these actions charged consumers illegal upfront fees, falsely promised to help reduce or forgive student loan debt burdens, and pretended to be affiliated with the government or loan servicers, in violation of the FTC’s Telemarketing Sales Rule and the FTC Act." Read more here. Learn more about FCC telemarketing laws and telemarketing regulations.

TCPA Reform Would Support Small Businesses and Spur Economic Benefits

Those who have experienced frustrations with the many hurdles and complexities of TCPA compliance will want to read this short opinion article that was published on jdsupra.com this week. "Growing evidence suggests that existing Telephone Consumer Protection Act (“TCPA”) compliance challenges, and the current TCPA litigation landscape, are increasingly a threat to many U.S. companies – particularly small businesses that have fewer resources and could face financial ruin if targeted by a class action lawsuit.  To help address this issue and support the U.S. economy, Congress and the Federal Communications Commission (“FCC”) should revise the current TCPA framework and facilitate reasonable, practical compliance approaches for companies attempting in good faith to communicate with customers." Read the full article here.

Practical TCPA Defense Tips

Having defended numerous Telephone Consumer Protection Act cases in state and federal courts across the country, we wanted to convey a few practical tips for those of you currently battling your own TCPA case, or who might face such a claim in the future:

• Prevention first.  Avoid TCPA claims in the first place by refraining from autodialing/texting cell phones or delivering prerecorded messages without express written consent.  Also, telemarketers should scrub state and federal DNC lists unless they have consent, and honor all opt-outs promptly.  If you have consent, be sure you can prove it through good record keeping. To learn more prevention tips, contact a TCPA defense attorney. Be sure to understand Do-Not-Call list regulations.
• When the demand or summons arrives, immediately preserve all relevant evidence and contact your legal department or outside counsel.  Relevant evidence includes, for example, call logs/CDRs, consent records, scripts, call recordings, P&P and related correspondence.
• Investigate potential exposure.  Did you make a mistake?  If so, how (correct it).  If you were in compliance, can you prove it?  If so, how (gather the evidence).
• Request answer/response extensions if needed, but be aware that in some courts, a motion or other filing requesting the extension must be filed.  Not all courts allow you to rely on an informal extension from opposing counsel.  This often requires the involvement of litigation counsel early on.
• Consider early settlement opportunities, especially if you can confirm you have liability.  If the plaintiff will settle for an amount less than the cost of an initial answer or motion to dismiss, you may seriously want to consider putting that money toward a settlement, rather than to your lawyers.  Look at the math of it. A Telemarketing Lawyer can often help you make wise settlement decisions, whether you ultimately fight the case or not.
• If you elect to fight the case, do so aggressively.  Consider filing a sold motion to dismiss the case on multiple grounds, rather than merely filing a boilerplate answer.
• Numerous avenues of attack exist in TCPA cases.  For example, we often motion to stay (postpone) cases pending an outcome in the important ACA International lawsuit against the FCC regarding what an autodialer is. Learn more about autodialer laws.

Learn more tips about telemarketing compliance.