Antitrust Law Daily Wrap Up, PRIVACY—9th Cir.: “Prior express consent” found in TCPA claim against airline reservation firm, (Feb 4, 2016)
Law Firms Mentioned:Blank Rome LLP | Kabateck Brown & Kellner, LLP
Organizations Mentioned:Blank Rome, LLP | Federal Communications Commission | Sabre Holdings Corp. | Sabre Travel Information Network, Inc. | Sabre, Inc.
By Michael Menzhuber, J.D., LL.M.
A district court’s grant of summary judgment, dismissing an individual’s Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) claim against an airline reservation technology contractor, was affirmed by the U.S. Court of Appeals in San Francisco (Baird v. Sabre, Inc., February 3, 2016, Per Curiam)
An individual alleged that that Sabre, Inc., a reservations technology contractor for Hawaiian Airlines, violated the TCPA by sending her a text message without her prior express consent. After the district court granted summary judgment in favor of Sabre, the plaintiff appealed.
The appellate court noted that the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), which has authority to prescribe regulations for the TCPA, determined that “persons who knowingly release their phone numbers have in effect given their invitation or permission to be called back at the number which they have given, absent instructions to the contrary.” The court further noted that the Hobbs Act provides the court of appeals with exclusive jurisdiction to enjoin, set aside, suspend, or determine the validity of all FCC final orders.
Because the plaintiff’s suit was not brought pursuant to the Hobbs Act, the validity of the FCC’s interpretation of “prior express consent” was presumed valid. The appellate court, therefore, determined that the plaintiff expressly consented to the text message she received when she: (1) provided Hawaiian Airlines with her cell phone number; (2) knowingly released her phone number to Hawaiian Airlines while making a flight reservation; and (3) did not provide any “instructions to the contrary,” indicating that she did not wish to be reached at that number.
The case is No. 14-55293.
Attorneys: Brian Kabateck (Kabateck Brown & Kellner, LLP) for Shaya Baird. Joshua Briones (Blank Rome LLP) for Sabre, Inc., Sabre Holdings Corp., and Sabre Travel Information Network, Inc.
Companies: Sabre, Inc.; Sabre Holdings Corp.; Sabre Travel Information Network, Inc.
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