WASHINGTON-The Foundation for Taxpayer and Consumer Rights said a California court threw out its billing suit against Nextel Communications Inc. after the mobile-phone carrier convinced a Superior Court judge that a November ballot measure to curb frivolous lawsuits effectively barred the consumer group from pursuing the litigation.
FTCR filed suit against Nextel in 2003 for assessing a $2.50 monthly fee for customers to receive itemized bills. The suit demanded that Nextel stop charging people for fully itemized bills and for spam text messages, and to make refunds.
Last fall, California voters approved Proposition 64, a measure backed by businesses to reduce the number of lawsuits for the sole purpose of extracting monetary settlements. One provision requires lawsuits be brought by alleged victims. FTCR’s action against Nextel did not do that, but the group said the next lawsuit will.
“Nextel’s corporate lawyers used Proposition 64 to avoid accountability to angry customers for its unfair billing practices,” said Harvey Rosenfield, one of the lawyers representing FTCR. “Consumers across the country are fed up with Nextel’s billing tricks and other abuses. FTCR will fight to give these consumers their day in court.”
FTCR said the California Supreme Court has agreed to decide whether Proposition 64 applies to lawsuits, such as the Nextel suit, filed before the measure was approved.
