Law / United States / 
Maryland
Maryland Telephone Consumer Protection Act
Md. Code Ann., Com. Law §§ 14-3201 to 14-3202
In force since .
A telephone contact rule binding private bodies.
- Obligation class
- Prohibition
What it requires
- Do not violate the federal Telemarketing and Consumer Fraud and Abuse Prevention Act as implemented by the Federal Trade Commission's Telemarketing Sales Rule, or the federal Telephone Consumer Protection Act as implemented by the Federal Communications Commission's telemarketing and telephone solicitation rules; either violation is independently unlawful, and independently actionable, under Maryland law.
These lines are LexLint's reading of the law's text. Also read by: AGV Sports Group, Inc. v. Protus IP Solutions, Inc., Misc. No. 2, September Term, 2010 (Md. Court of Appeals, on certification from the U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland) (recorded ).
In the frameworks
- NIST Privacy Framework
- GV.PO-P5Legal, regulatory, and contractual requirements regarding privacy are understood and managed.
Our reading of where this law's duties sit in each framework. It never says that running a control meets the law. How we read a framework against the law
If you get it wrong
Criminal exposureYes
Private right of actionYes
Criminal exposure note
Under section 13-411 of Title 13, a person who violates any provision of the title is guilty of a misdemeanor subject to a fine not exceeding $1,000 or imprisonment not exceeding one year, or both, in addition to any civil penalties.
Penalty structure
Under section 13-410 of Title 13, a merchant who engages in a violation is subject to a fine not exceeding $10,000 for each violation, and $25,000 for each subsequent violation of the same kind after a finding. The fines are civil penalties recoverable by the State.
- Rule
- Per violation only
- As of
- Currency
- USD
- Per violation unit
- Violation
- Per violation amount
- 25,000
Statutory damages
Damages of $500 for each violation or actual damages, whichever is greater, plus reasonable attorney's fees; each prohibited telephone solicitation and each prohibited practice during a telephone solicitation is a separate violation.
- As of
- Currency
- USD
- Per person minimum
- 500
Who enforces it
Enforcement body
An individual's private civil action under Md. Code Ann., Com. Law § 14-3202(b); the Consumer Protection Division of the Office of the Attorney General under Title 13's unfair or deceptive trade practice provisions.
Settledness
The decision construes the subtitle's remedy clause (section 14-3202(b)) for limitations purposes, not the duty in section 14-3201.
- As of
- Case link
- https://www.mdcourts.gov/data/opinions/coa/2010/2a10m.pdf
- Case citation
- AGV Sports Group, Inc. v. Protus IP Solutions, Inc., Misc. No. 2, September Term, 2010 (Md. Court of Appeals, on certification from the U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland)
- Open questions
- Does 'as implemented by the Federal Communications Commission in the Restrictions on Telemarketing and Telephone Solicitations Rule (47 C.F.R. Part 64, Subpart L)' in section 14-3201(2) carry forward later amendments to that federal rule, or only the rule as it stood when the subtitle was enacted?
What this law does
A person may not violate the federal Telemarketing and Consumer Fraud and Abuse Prevention Act, as implemented by the Federal Trade Commission's Telemarketing Sales Rule, or the federal Telephone Consumer Protection Act, as implemented by the Federal Communications Commission's telemarketing and telephone solicitation rules.
A violation of either federal law is also an unfair or deceptive trade practice under Title 13 of the Commercial Law Article and is subject to that title's enforcement and penalty provisions. An individual affected by a violation may separately sue to recover reasonable attorney's fees and damages of $500 for each violation or actual damages, whichever is greater, with each prohibited telephone solicitation and each prohibited practice during one treated as its own separate violation.
When LexLint raises it
When your app profile says your app sends automated outreach or places automated calls.
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