Catching a Break: Eleventh Circuit Vacates the FCC’s “One-to-One” TCPA Consent Rule
In recent years, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has adopted various Reports and Orders containing new rules aimed at thwarting rampant abuse of robocalling and robotexting, especially in light of emerging technologies that make such illegal calls easier to place and more dangerous to consumers, as scammers are using this technology to trick individuals into divulging personal information such as Social Security numbers, credit card details, and financial account information. The volume of new rules coming out of the FCC regarding this ever-changing landscape makes it challenging for companies that have to deploy compliant consent mechanisms to continue their marketing and advertising activities. The latest of these rules was set to take effect on January 27, 2025, based on the FCC’s Second Report and Order (R&O) that imposed new standards under the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) for obtaining prior written consent to receive certain marketing calls and text messages. Part III.D of the R&O states that a consumer cannot consent to a telemarketing or advertising robocall unless the consumer: (1) consents to calls from only one seller at a time; (2) receives a clear and conspicuous disclosure from the seller that the consumer will receive telemarketing calls or texts using an automatic telephone dialing system or an artificial or prerecorded voice; and (3) consents...