In Kramer v. Perez, No. 08-3841, plaintiff sued claiming that defendants and their company sent millions of spam e-mails to plaintiff’s business in violation of Iowa’s anti-spam statute. After a bench trial, the district court held defendants jointly and severally liable for over $236 million in statutory damages. Defendant, Suzanne Bartok, one of the individuals held liable, appealed.
As the court of appeals wrote: “the district court held Perez and Bartok jointly and severally liable to Kramer for over $236 million in statutory damages-$10 per spam e-mail transmitted under the anti-spam statute’s private cause of action.”
The Eighth Circuit reversed, holding that the district court incorrectly interpreted and applied Iowa’s anti-spam statute to hold defendant jointly and severally liable. Specifically:
However, “[s]ince there is no evidence that Bartok ever used an interactive computer service to initiate the sending of spam, Bartok cannot be held liable for violating section 714E.1(2).”
Related Resources
- Full Text of Kramer v. Perez, No. 08-3841
You Don’t Have To Solve This on Your Own – Get a Lawyer’s Help
Civil Rights
Block on Trump’s Asylum Ban Upheld by Supreme Court
Criminal
Judges Can Release Secret Grand Jury Records
Politicians Can’t Block Voters on Facebook, Court Rules
