Sprint Communications Co., L.P. v. APCC Services, Inc. (2007)
- Docket
- 07-552
- Decided
- 2007-01-01
Summary
Question: Do third-party companies hired by pay-phone operators to collect compensation for coinless long-distance calls have standing to sue telecommunication companies over the amount of the fees? Conclusion: Yes. In a close 5-4 ruling, the Court held that third-party companies like APCC have standing to pursue legal claims that have been assigned to them, even when they must then pass along any proceeds from the litigation to the pay-phone operators who hired them. The Court based its ruling on the "history and precedent" of assignees brining legal claims on behalf of others, and found that Sprint had not made any convincing arguments for departing from that history in this case. Justice Stephen Breyer delivered the opinion of the Court. Chief Justice John G. Roberts, joined by Justices Antonin Scalia, Clarence Thomas, and Samuel Alito, filed a dissenting opinion. Roberts referred to the historical precedent relied on by the majority as "at best, equivocal." Because APCC was required to pass the proceeds from the lawsuit onto the pay-phone operators, it had "nothing to gain" from the suit. Roberts therefore argued that the case should be dismissed.