TOOK TOO LONG: TCPA Suit Brought by PLG Damage Attorneys Dismissed For Lack of Prosecution– And What is Going On Here

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A couple weeks back we broke the story of Gerald Lane admitting to a federal judge he had been subject to 145 OSCs related to failing to prosecute (i.e. move along) 145 different TCPA suits his office had filed. Just an astounding number of times to have to answer to the court for tardiness.

Well PLG Damage Attorneys lawyer Faythe Elizabeth Gutierrez just saw a TCPA suit she had filed get entirely dismissed for failing to serve the lawsuit on the opposing side.

In Fasheh v. Xercize Studio, LLC 2026 WL 2480243 (C.D. Cal. Aug. 25, 2026) the Court dismissed a TCPA suit after the Plaintiff failed to serve the complaint and summons on the defendant in a timely manner.

The key part of the ruling is as follows:

On May 18, 2026, Plaintiff Lina Fasheh filed this putative class action under the Telephone Consumer Protection Act against
Defendant The Xercize Studio, LLC. (See generally Dkt. 1 (Complaint).) On August 17, 2026, the court issued an Order to
Show Cause re Dismissal for Lack of Prosecution (the “OSC”), noting that Plaintiff had not yet filed a proof of service on
Defendant, even though 90 days had passed since the filing of the Complaint. (Dkt. 12 at 1 (citing, among other authority, Fed.
R. Civ. P. 4(m)).) The court set a response deadline of August 19, 2026, and specifically advised that “[f]ailure to file a timely
and appropriate response to this Order may result in dismissal without further order or notice from the court.” (Id.) Now, days
after the court’s deadline for Plaintiff to respond to the OSC, Plaintiff has filed nothing. (See generally Dkt.)

The court goes on to analyze four key factors and determines they weigh in favor of dismissal.

So the case was tossed out.

Now the dismissal is without prejudice so the plaintiff can bring the suit again once her attorneys get their act together.

With the huge rise in TCPA class action filings in 2026 I suppose it was inevitable that some of these cases fall through the cracks as the plaintiff’s lawyers rush to the courthouse. Still I am surprised to see lawyers ignoring court orders and getting their client’s cases tossed altogether. Will keep an eye on all of this.

And you should keep an eye on Deserve to Win podcast ep 47. This is a great episode featuring Rick Ruth talking carrier relations and telecom nerd stuff and the lovely Dame of TCPAWorld– Tori Guidry– making partner live on the show!

Chat soon.

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Published by Eric "Czar" 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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