Ninth Circuit Finds No Coverage for TCPA Claim Under D&O Policy Per Privacy Exclusion

On August 23, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed a decision by Judge Molly M. Gee of the United States District Court for the Central District of California holding that the Los Angeles Lakers were not entitled to insurance coverage under their D&O Policy for a class action alleging the team sent unsolicited text messages to fans in violation of the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA). Upholding the district court’s decision, the court concluded that the TCPA claims fell within the invasion of privacy exclusion in the Lakers’ D&O Policy, which excluded coverage for claims “based upon, arising from, or in consequence of libel, slander, oral or written publication of defamatory or disparaging materials, invasion of privacy...”