Hancock v. AT&T Co. (Tenth Circuit)
The plaintiffs in this case brought a multistate class action in federal court in Oklahoma on behalf of customers of AT&T, alleging that they were dissatisfied with AT&T’s U-Verse service (which provides television, voice, and Internet services). The district court granted our motion to compel arbitration of claims relating to Internet service—requiring that customers resolve those disputes on an individual basis—and our motion to dismiss claims relating to TV/Voice service because the plaintiffs were subject to a forum-selection clause requiring that such claims be brought in Texas. On appeal, plaintiffs contended that (i) the “click-wrap” contract-formation processes failed to provide them with adequate notice of the relevant terms and (ii) AT&T’s use of “custom-and-practice” evidence to prove the existence of the plaintiffs’ agreements was insufficient. The Tenth Circuit affirmed, rejecting plaintiffs’ arguments in the first opinion by that court to address the enforceability of click-wrap agreements in any detail. Archis Parasharami (DC) argued the case. Evan Tager (DC) assisted on the brief.