Charvat v. EchoStar Satellite, LLC., 09-4525

Action for violations of the Telephone Consumer Protection Act referred to the FCC

Charvat v. EchoStar Satellite, LLC., 09-4525, concerned a plaintiff's suit against EchoStar Satellite (EchoStar) for 307 violations of the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (Act) and its accompanying regulations, and raising claims under the Ohio consumer protection statute and Ohio common law, wherein the district court dismissed several of the claims under the Act and granted summary judgment on the remaining claims.


First, the court held that the district court had federal question jurisdiction over the claims under the Act and pendent jurisdiction over the rest of the claims.  Next, the court held that, because the district court did not have the benefit of GVN Michigan, Inc., 561 F.3d 623, which held that the Act allows a plaintiff to recover damages for the first telephone call that violates the Act, the four counts of the complaint should not have been dismissed, at least not on the ground that the statute did  not allow for damages based on a telemarketer's first improper call. The court ultimately referred the matter to the FCC in concluding that the answers to the question of whether the Act and its accompanying regulations permit plaintiff to recover damages from EchoStar, an entity that did not place any illegal calls to him but whose independent contractors did, implicate the FCC's statutory authority to interpret the Act.

Related Link:

• Read the Sixth Circuit's Full Decision in Charvat v. EchoStar Satellite, LLC., 09-4525