U.S. District Court Lacks Jurisdiction in FTSA Case Over Unsolicited Texts: Plaintiff

U.S. District Court lacks jurisdiction over plaintiff Jamie Vargas’ lawsuit alleging Redbox violated Florida’s Telephone Solicitation Act (FTSA), said Vargas’ motion (docket 3:23-cv-08760) to remand the case to state court Wednesday in U.S. District Court for Northern Florida in Pensacola. Redbox removed the case from the First Judicial Circuit Court for Escambia County in April (see 2304260048). Vargas alleged Redbox sent “numerous telephone sales calls” to his cellphone, but “the only concrete example given is a string of five text messages,” said U.S. District Judge Casey Rodgers in April (see 2304280045), saying it’s “questionable” whether the alleged harm is sufficient to allege a concrete injury-in-fact standing for Article III purposes. Vargas disputes that his allegations are sufficient to satisfy Article III standing but not state court standing, asserting Redbox bears the burden of establishing that Vargas has Article III standing to remain in federal court, said the motion. In its response to the April 27 court order, Redbox said Wednesday it properly removed the action to federal court and requested that the court grant its pending motion to stay. The defendant referenced the 11th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals’ forthcoming en banc rehearing of Drazen v. Pinto, which will address whether receipt of an unsolicited text message is sufficient to establish Article III standing. Vargas alleges Redbox makes sales calls and texts to consumers without having secured prior express written consent as required by the FTSA. A screenshot from Vargas’ phone showed the five texts from September to October pitching free movies, menu deals and discounts, one in exchange for “deets.” Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) signed bill HB-716 Thursday loosening state robocall restrictions The new law is likely to lessen autodialer litigation in a state that briefly had some of the tightest restrictions, said telemarketing lawyers. Vargas' class action claims the video rental company sent more than 10,000 marketing text messages to telephone companies with Florida area codes. Vargas seeks an injunction requiring Redbox to cease unauthorized sales calls, plus statutory damages.