Justia Consumer Law Opinion Summaries

The district court dismissed class actions filed under the Telephone Consumer Protection Act, 47 U.S.C. 227(b), which provides a private right of action against senders of unsolicited faxes, for lack of diversity jurisdiction. The Third Circuit vacated and remanded, first noting its 1998 decision that claims under the TCPA do not qualify for federal question jurisdiction. Congress did not intend to totally strip federal courts of jurisdiction over TCPA claims, in favor of exclusive state court jurisdiction. Absent such intent, diversity jurisdiction is presumed to exist, regardless of the basis of the claim. Because the court may have diversity jurisdiction over individual TCPA claims, it must allow adequate discovery to determine whether the case meets the requirements for class certification under Rule 23.