Michigan Cannabis Brands Accused of Using Robocalls & Telemarketing

At least three Michigan cannabis companies are facing class-action lawsuits over their alleged use of unsolicited telemarketing, MLive reports. This year, Florida attorney Andrew J. Shamis filed lawsuits in federal court against MichiCann Medical, AEY Capital, and Light ‘N Up Provisioning and Microbuddery claiming the companies sent unsolicited marketing text messages or automated phone calls without proper consent in violation of the Telephone Consumer Protection Act.

The lawsuits claim that the unsolicited marketing “resulted in the invasion of privacy, harassment, aggravation, and disruption of the daily life of thousands of individuals.” The class-action nature of the lawsuits potentially allows anyone who’s received unsolicited texts or calls to join the case.

Attorney Ben Joffe of Ann Arbor-based Benjamin D. Joffe law firm, who represents several Michigan cannabis businesses, said such lawsuits are sometimes called “lawsuit trolling” because its “basically writing the same exact complaint other than a few facts that change.”

According to an MLive analysis of court documents, Shamis often files similar lawsuits throughout the U.S. and they often target cannabis companies. Currently, he has pending cases in Arizona making similar claims.

“They try and get it certified as a class hoping somebody sent out 100,000 and they can settle for $50 each text message or even $5 for each text message and you get a large payoff. As the attorney, you’ve got the retainer that lets you take a third of that or whatnot.” – Joffe to MLive

The lawsuits reviewed by MLive are requesting a settlement of up to $1,500 per unsolicited text message.