Hey TCPAWorld,

Its heating up in South Florida and I am not talking about our sunny weather. Late-night marketing texts are fueling serious litigation, and this time, Dick’s Sporting Goods finds itself in some (legal) heat!

A new class action lawsuit was filed in the Southern District of Florida, and it is another reminder that the “Quiet Hours” complaints are keeping folks up at night, literally!  Under the TCPA and its implementing regulation, telephone solicitations to any residential telephone subscriber are prohibited before 8 a.m. or after 9 p.m. local time. 47 C.F.R. § 64.1200(c)(1). And a familiar South Florida law firm is making a name for itself with these lawsuits.

In Melinda Tindol v. Dick’s Sporting Goods, the plaintiff is suing Dick’s for allegedly sending marketing text messages in the middle of the night. According to the complaint, between July 11, 2024, and February 9, 2025, Dick’s Sporting Goods initiated multiple telephone solicitations to the Tindol’s cell phone. Specifically, the messages were sent at 10:32 PM, 1:03 AM, 1:47 AM, 1:51 AM, 3:02 AM, 3:05 AM, and even 4:40 AM—all in the plaintiff’s local time zone. Tindol alleges that these late-night texts were sent to advertise, promote, or market Dick’s property, goods, or services in violation of the TCPA.

Tindol seeks to represent a class of: All persons in the United States who from four years prior to the filing of this action through the date of class certification (1) Defendant, or anyone on Defendant’s behalf, (2) placed more than one marketing text message within any 12-month period; (3) where such marketing text messages were initiated before the hour of 8 a.m. or after 9 p.m. (local time at the called party’s location).

This lawsuit follows the typical playbook: screenshots of the texts, precise time stamps, and a proposed class definition designed to pull in thousands.

While these lawsuits continue to mount, R.E.A.C.H. isn’t staying on the sidelines. Last month, R.E.A.C.H. asked the FCC to help end these abusive lawsuits. R.E.A.C.H.’s position is simple: the TCPA’s time restrictions apply only to unsolicited messages, and texts sent with a consumer’s prior express invitation or permission fall outside those limits. If someone opts in, the timing restrictions shouldn’t apply. The full comment is available here:  REACH – Comments on ‘Quiet Hours’ Petition -04102025