Albert, et al. v. GTL, et al. (2020)
Background: Filed in June 2020, Albert, et al. v GTL, et al. is a nationwide, class-action lawsuit brought against the largest telecom companies in the prison phone service business. The suit seeks redress and relief from defendants Global Tel*Link Corp., Securus Technologies, and 3Cinteractive Corp colluding to inflate and set the price of single calls from incarcerated individuals high above competitive levels. Under the scheme, incarcerated individuals allegedly paid as much as $14.99 for single phone calls lasting up to 15 minutes.
The lawsuit also highlights defendants’ misrepresentations to agencies and consumers in order to justify the high “single call” prices, allowing defendants to swell their profits in violation of racketeering laws.
Impact: Since filing, GTL and 3Ci have agreed to a $21.3 million settlement. New regulation has also kicked in, with the Federal Communications Commission capping the exorbitant cost of prison calls in July 2024. Litigation against Securus is still ongoing.
Media coverage: Prison Legal News
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