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Federal Court Dismisses Lawsuit, Finding Alleged Faxes Were Not Sent to a “Telephone Facsimile Machine”

The TCPA generally prohibits the transmission of an “unsolicited advertisement” to a “telephone facsimile machine.” 47 U.S.C. § 227(b)(1)(c). But is an “online fax service” a “telephone facsimile machine”? And can a plaintiff state a claim based on faxes that were sent to its “online fax service”? The U.S. District Court for the District of Colorado recently answered both questions in the negative. See Astro Companies, LLC v. Westfax, Inc., et al., No. 1:23-cv-02328 (D. Colo. Feb. 12, 2025).

Plaintiff Astro Companies, LLC (Astro) alleged that it is an online fax service provider that uses a fax server to convert “traditional faxes” into readable formats (such as a PDF), which are then either emailed to the recipient or made available online to be viewed (and potentially printed) at the recipient’s convenience. Astro sued multiple companies, claiming it had received “junk” faxes in violation of the TCPA. Even accepting Astro’s well-pleaded factual allegations as true, the court granted a defendant’s motion to dismiss, found Astro failed to state a claim, and, ultimately, dismissed the action with prejudice.

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District of Arizona Denies Certification of Claims Against Defendant That Had Defaulted

A TCPA defendant in Arizona federal court recently uncovered what appears to be a previously undiscovered silver-lining to a default judgment: a denial of class certification.

In Heidarpour v. Secured Mktg. Concepts Corp., 2025 WL 764287, at *1 (D. Ariz. Mar. 11, 2025), the plaintiff brought a putative TCPA class action for alleged telemarketing calls that were placed without the prior express written consent of call recipients. When the defendant failed to appear, the plaintiff moved simultaneously for default judgment and class certification. The court denied class certification, explaining that “even if permissible, certifying a class when a defendant is in default may not be prudent.” Id. at *2.

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