Schnall v. AT&T Wireless Services, Inc.

Martin Schnall, Nathan Riensche, and other AT&T Wireless Services (AT&T) (defendant) customers (plaintiffs) sued in Washington state court, alleging AT&T misled customers nationwide by tacking on an FCC-related fee not clearly reflected in advertised rates or billing statements, and sought certification of a nationwide class asserting contract claims and Washington Consumer Protection Act (CPA) violations. The trial court denied nationwide certification, finding individual questions predominated and that each customer's service contract's choice-of-law clause required applying the law of the customer's home state, but the court of appeals reversed and certified the class before the Washington Supreme Court granted review.