A divided Eleventh Circuit panel held that an internet-based video programming platform could not enforce an arbitration agreement against a suing customer because the agreement, inserted among the website’s hyperlinked terms and conditions, was insufficiently conspicuous to put a reasonably prudent person on notice of its existence. Tejon v. Zeus Networks, LLC,2026 WL 1194722 (May…
Author: Tom Byrne
“Effective Vindication Doctrine” Spares ERISA Plan-wide Claim from Arbitration
An arbitration provision in a defined contribution employee benefit plan that prohibited relief on behalf of the plan, allowing relief for only individual participants, is unenforceable, the court held in Williams v. Shapiro, 2025 WL 3625999 (Dec. 15, 2025). The court ruled that the “effective vindication doctrine” prohibits prospective waivers of statutory rights granted by…
Once Litigation Filed, It’s Too Late to Cure Failure to Meet AAA Arbitration Requirements
Business parties who seek the advantages of arbitration, including protection from class actions, must take care to comply with the arbitral forum’s requirements or risk losing those advantages. This is the upshot of the Eleventh Circuit’s recent decision in Merritt Island Woodwerx, LLC v. Space Coast Credit Union, 2025 WL 1450492 (11th Cir. May 21, 2025)(per curiam). …
Added Fees for Online or Phone Payment Violate FDCPA
Charging optional fees for making expedited mortgage payments online or by phone violates the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA), according to the Eleventh Circuit. Glover v. Ocwen Loan Servicing, LLC, 127 F. 4th 1278 (11th Cir. Feb. 4, 2025). The FDCPA prohibits collection of any fee that is not expressly authorized by the agreement…
Post-Removal Intervention Destroys Diversity Jurisdiction
Once a case is removed to federal district court on the basis of the diverse citizenship of the original parties, staying there is not guaranteed. Certain subsequent events can still deprive the court of jurisdiction. One such event, Fed. R. Civ. P. 24 intervention of a non-diverse plaintiff, led to a recent Eleventh Circuit decision…
No Go for GoDaddy Coupon Settlement
Senior Judge Gerald Tjoflat has a well-earned reputation for lengthy opinions, especially in class actions. His recent opinion disapproving the class-action settlement involving GoDaddy is of epic length, but he could not win the concurrence of the other two panel members, Judges Wilson and Branch. Drazen v. Pinto, 101 F. 4th 1223 (11th Cir. May…
One More Time: No Standing for Injunctive Relief, No Class Settlement Approval
For the second time in less than a year, the Eleventh Circuit has vacated a district court’s approval of a class action settlement on the ground that the named plaintiffs lacked standing to seek the injunctive relief component of the settlement. In Smith v. Miorelli, 2024 WL 7700360 (11th Cir. Feb. 26, 2024), the court…
For Willful Violation, Fair Credit Reporting Act Claim For Statutory Damages Does Not Require Proof of Actual Damage
A plaintiff suing under the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) need not prove actual damages as a result of a willful violation in order to recover statutory damages, according to the Eleventh Circuit, joining several other circuits in that conclusion. Santos v. Healthcare Revenue Recovery Group, LLC, 2023 WL 7289662(11th Cir. Nov. 6, 2023). The…
Blue Cross/Shield $2.67B Class Action Settlement Approval Affirmed
The court affirmed a district court’s approval of a $2.67 billion class action settlement of an antitrust multi-district litigation brought against Blue Cross Blue Shield Association and its local member plans alleging Sherman Act violations in restrictions on the member plans’ ability to compete. In re Blue Cross Blue Shield Antitrust Litig. MDL 2406, 2023…
Single Unwanted Text Enough For TCPA Standing
In an unusual showing of unanimity, the full Eleventh Circuit held that a single unwanted text is enough to confer Article III standing to assert a claim under the Telephone Consumer Protection Act. Drazen v. Pinto, 2023 WL 4699939 (July 24, 2023). The original panel opinion, vacated by the grant of rehearing en banc, arose…