MIXED BAG: Famous Litigator Mark Dobronski (TCPAWorld’s W.H.?) Wins Some and Loses Some in New TCPA Ruling

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So Mark Dobronski is everyone’s favorite.

He’s filed numerous TCPA suits and is famous for his generally unpleasant disposition.  He is also believed to be the cranky voice “W.H.” that frequently stalks the comment section of TCPAWorld articles with generally demeaning commentary. Pleasant.

Regardless, in a recent case he sued a company for making calls that allegedly violated the TCPA as well as the individual who allegedly called him. He contended both the company and the caller violated the TCPA’s rules preventing marketing calls without a DNC and a policy to provide training.

In Dobronski v. Horvath, 2023 WL 7924707 (E.D. Mich. Nov. 16, 2023) the Court rejected these claims finding they had been pleaded without any supporting facts. The Court also concluded Dobronski could not argue Defendant lacked an internal DNC policy because he had not alleged he asked for it pre-suit. And as to the individual Defendant the court found he could not be sued for the company’s failure to train him–which makes sense.

Then again, the Court found Dobronski had stated a claim under the  Michigan Home Solicitation Sales Act because it bans calls made to Michigan residents that are on the national DNC list. The court found Dobronski had adequately alleged both elements.

SO there you go. Dobronski lives on to fight on his state claim but loses two of his TCPA claims. Interesting little ruling on the limits of the internal DNC rules–nice to know individuals cant be sued when their employer fails to properly train them. That makes sense but this is the first case, to my knowledge, to so hold.

BTW–if you don’t have a copy of Deserve to Win (Issue 2) be sure to subscribe now and save! Issue 3 will be out in January and will have the Real Associates of OC on the cover!

Chat soon.

 

 

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Published by Eric J. Troutman

The Czar of TCPAWorld Eric Troutman is one of the country’s prominent class action defense lawyers and is nationally recognized in Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) litigation and compliance. He has served as lead defense counsel in more than 70 national TCPA class actions and has litigated nearly a thousand individual TCPA cases in his role as national strategic litigation counsel for major banks and finance companies. He also helps industry participants build TCPA-compliant processes, policies, and systems. Eric has built a national litigation practice based upon deep experience, rigorous analysis and extraordinary responsiveness. Eric and his team feel equally at home litigating multibillion dollar telecommunications class actions in federal court as they do developing and executing national litigation strategies for institutions facing an onslaught of individual TCPA matters. They thrive in each of these roles – delivering consistently excellent results – while never losing sight of the client experience. While many firms now tout TCPA expertise, Eric has been there from the beginning. He built one of the country’s first TCPA-only defense teams and began serving as national TCPA counsel for his clients nearly a decade ago. This perspective allows him to swiftly develop the right litigation strategies for dealing with recurring problems, without wasting time on tactics that are bound to fail. Eric’s rich historical perspective and encyclopedic knowledge of the TCPA landscape also make him an invaluable resource to institutional compliance teams struggling to comply with the shifting regulatory landscape. No task is too small – or too big. Indeed, Eric and his team have helped build TCPA-compliant systems and processes for some of the largest and most complex corporate entities in the country. He commonly works with in-house compliance counsel to build and implement enterprise and business-line specific TCPA solutions, performs TCPA audits and drafts and reviews proposed TCPA policies and procedures. He and his team also have the technical expertise necessary to assist call centers seeking to develop TCPA-resistant call path architecture or to modify existing telephony and software integration to better insulate from potential TCPA exposure. Eric has built a reputation for thought leadership. An avid blogger and speaker, he has been at the forefront of the industry’s effort to push for clarity and a return to sanity for the TCPA for years. He was selected to advocate for the financial services industry on important TCPA issues before the Federal Communications Commission and co-authored the nation’s only comprehensive practice guide on TCPA defense. In his spare time, Eric leads defense teams representing banks and other financial services companies in consumer finance litigation matters. He has experience representing clients in UCC, TILA, RESPA FCRA, CCRA, CLRA, FDCPA, RFDCPA and FCCPA claims, as well as in fraud and bank operations issues.

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