LexLint

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Law / United States

Wiretap Act

18 U.S.C. 2511, 2520

A citation is an address, not a summary. The first part names the law; what follows narrows it to the exact section, article or paragraph.

What follows is LexLint's own research summary of this law, not legal advice.

In force.

An interception and recording consent rule binding public and private bodies.

As of .

What it requires

  • Get the consent of at least one party to a wire, oral, or electronic communication before intercepting, recording, transcribing, or disclosing its contents; consent from a person who is themselves a party to the call is enough under federal law even without the other party's knowledge, unless the interception is for the purpose of committing a crime or a tort.
  • Expect a civil suit from anyone whose communication you intercept, disclose, or use without the required consent, for the greater of actual damages plus your profits, or statutory damages of $100 a day per violation or $10,000, whichever is greater, plus punitive damages and the plaintiff's attorney's fees.
  • Expect criminal exposure of a fine or up to five years' imprisonment for an intentional violation.
  • Many states require the consent of every party to a call or conversation, not just one; a product used in those states needs to satisfy that stricter state rule, which is researched separately by state.

If you get it wrong

Criminal exposureYes

Private right of actionYes

Criminal exposure note

Whoever violates the interception prohibition is fined under Title 18 or imprisoned not more than five years, or both.

Statutory damages

The court may award the greater of actual damages plus the violator's profits, or statutory damages of $100 a day for each day of violation or $10,000, whichever is greater, plus punitive damages in appropriate cases and a reasonable attorney's fee.

As of
Currency
USD
Per person minimum
10,000

Who enforces it

Enforcement body

Private civil action under 18 U.S.C. 2520; criminal prosecution by the United States

What it reaches

Obligation class

Consent

What this law does

Drafted with AI from the cited sources under the direction of UnGovr staff. UnGovr holds editorial responsibility for this page.

It is unlawful to intentionally intercept, or procure another person to intercept, a wire, oral, or electronic communication, but federal law requires the consent of only one party to the communication: a person who is themselves a party to the call, or who has the prior consent of one of the parties, may record or disclose it without the other party's knowledge, unless the interception is for the purpose of committing a crime or a tort.

A person whose communication is intercepted, disclosed, or used in violation of this chapter has a civil action for the greater of actual damages plus the violator's profits, or statutory damages of $100 a day per violation or $10,000, whichever is greater, plus punitive damages and attorney's fees. An intentional violation is also a federal crime punishable by a fine or up to five years' imprisonment.

Many states require the consent of every party to a call or conversation rather than only one, and are researched separately as their own jurisdictions.

When LexLint raises it

  • records_conversations
  • processes_voice

Read the law

US Code, official text (uscode.house.gov)

Every line above is drawn from the primary source linked here, read on the date shown. This is a research summary, not legal advice.

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