A
In his complaint, Thompson claimed Genesco ran afoul of the TCPA's IDNC regulations found in 47 C.F.R. § 64.1200(d), which prohibit initiating telephone solicitations without first instituting procedures for maintaining an internal list of people who request not to be called. Specifically, Thompson alleged that Genesco failed to have a written policy, available upon demand, for maintaining its IDNC list, to train and inform its relevant personnel about the list, to maintain the list and to "keep notice" of the federal Do-Not-Call registry's database.
Genesco moved for judgment on the pleadings, but, sua sponte,
While the court determined that Thompson could satisfy both the injury and redressability prongs, it concluded that there was no causal connection between Thompson's alleged injury—the irritation resulting from the unwanted calls—and Genesco's conduct—the alleged failure to maintain its IDNC list. The Court ultimately concluded that because Thompson never asked to be put on Genesco's IDNC list, he was not injured when the company failed to add him to the list.
"[A]n obvious, critical link between his injury and those violations is glaringly absent: the factual allegation that Thompson actually asked to be put on that internal do-not-call list in the first place,"
If Thompson could not allege a way—any way—in which he would appear on a Genesco internal do-not-call list, then his injury cannot be traced to Genesco's failure to maintain one, the court added. Whether Genesco actually maintained the required list or not, Thompson would have suffered precisely the same injury.
"Without such a 'causal connection,' there is no traceability, and consequently, no Article III standing to challenge Genesco's alleged failure to maintain compliance with § 64.1200(d),"
To read the memorandum and order in Thompson v.
Why it Matters
Without Article III standing, a lawsuit cannot proceed in federal court. Courts finding that standing to bring an IDNC claim under the TCPA requires a request to be placed on the IDNC list (like the
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CA 90064
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