Companies doing business in Illinois should consider getting up to speed on the Illinois Biometric Information Privacy Act (BIPA). We have reported on numerous (but not all) cases filed against technology companies and employers for alleged violations of BIPA [view related posts here]. The class action lawsuits continue to get filed at a rapid

Last week, TOPS Software LLC (TOPS), a software company that specializes in condominium and homeowners association communication platforms, was served with a class action in Illinois federal court which alleges that TOPS violated the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) by using auto dialer technology to solicit consumers to attend the “CAMfire conference.” The CAMfire Conference

Last week, A&B Insurance and Financial LLC (A&B Insurance) agreed to pay $4.25 million to settle claims that it violated the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) by initiating telephone calls to consumers without prior express consent, as required by the TCPA, including some calls to consumers on the federal Do Not Call Registry. Lead plaintiffs,

Central Florida Regional Hospital (the Hospital) was released from a proposed class action last week for its alleged violations of the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA). The Hospital’s debt collector, Transworld Systems, allegedly made autodialed calls to collect overdue hospital debts without prior patient consent. Lead plaintiff, Charles Ivy, former emergency room patient at the

Last week, Georgia federal judge, U.S. District Judge Clay D. Land, approved the final order and judgment to settle class action claims that Central Payment Co. LLC (Central Payment) violated the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) for $6.5 million. Lead plaintiff, Fred Heidarpour, claimed that Central Payment violated the TCPA by hiring third parties to

A group of Rite Aid customers sued Rite Aid in December of 2014 for alleged violations of the Telephone Consumer Protection Act when it sent flu shot reminders to consumer’s cellphones without written consent.

On March 30, 2017, a federal district court judge in New York dismissed the proposed class action lawsuit by granting Rite

American Eagle Outfitters (American Eagle) settled a class action filed against it for alleged Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) violations for $14.5 million last week. The class action complaint alleged that American Eagle send unsolicited text message messages to over 600,000 unique cell phone numbers without prior written consent as required by the TCPA. The

This year has been a busy year for education law in the area of data privacy. Educational institutions continue to be a rich target for hackers. Additionally, there were some important developments in the interpretation of Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) and the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) as it applies to educational institutions.

  • In December, DeVry University Settled with the FTC for $100 million over allegations that it misled prospective students with ads that promised higher employment success and income upon graduation.
  • Also in December, UMass Amherst settled with the Office for Civil Rights (OCR) for $650,000 for HIPAA violations related to a malware infection that led to the release of names, addresses, Social Security numbers, dates of birth, health insurance information, diagnoses, and procedure codes.
  • In November, a hacker gained access to 1,213 records of applicants to the University of Wisconsin Law School.
  • On September 14, 2016, the Department of Education (DOE) issued a “Dear Colleague Letter” providing guidance on the application of FERPA to the disclosure of student medical records in the context of litigation.

Continue Reading Top Ten Education Developments, Breaches, and Settlements of 2016

Earlier this month, a Louisiana federal judge granted final approval of a $9.25 million settlement between Advanced Care Scripts Inc. (Advanced Care) and a class of plaintiffs—led by Jefferson Radiation Oncology LLC (Jefferson Radiation), a Louisiana-based treatment facility. Plaintiffs alleged that Advanced Care sent fax advertisements that violated the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA), by