TCPA Class Certified Based Largely On "Concrete Injury" Determination

Following the United States Supreme Court's decision in Spokeo Inc. v. Robins, 136 S. Ct. 1540, 1549 (2016) – which held that Article III standing requires a concrete injury, even when an injury has otherwise been established for statutory purposes – there has been a debate as to what constitutes Article III "concrete injury" under the Telephone Consumer Protection Act of 1991 (TCPA), 47 U.S.C. § 227.

With certain exceptions, the TCPA creates a statutory cause of action for injunctions, damages, or both against persons or entities that initiate phone calls to residential telephone lines using an artificial or prerecorded voice to deliver a message without the prior express consent of the called party.