Appellant customer sought review of a judgment from the Superior Court of Los Angeles County - timscotty/timscotty GitHub Wiki

Appellant customer sought review of a judgment from the Superior Court of Los Angeles County (California), which dismissed, after sustaining a demurrer without leave to amend, the customer's action seeking to recover telephone charges that she alleged were imposed fraudulently and in breach of contract by respondent local telephone companies.

With a lawyer representing them, the customer alleged that the companies advertised a monthly service charge that did not include a network access charge for interstate calls and then included such a charge on the bill, labeled as a federally imposed amount. The companies conceded that they were not required to file a tariff or to impose the charge, but they argued that they were protected by the filed rate doctrine, which prohibited challenges to filed tariffs, because they had tariffs on file with the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) pursuant to 47 U.S.C.S. § 203(a). The court found merit in the companies' argument, holding that where there was a valid tariff on file with the FCC, the filed rate doctrine was applicable. The consumer's claims were barred by the filed rate doctrine because she sought monetary damages, which would effectively result in a discounted rate for her local phone service, thus causing discrimination among customers and subverting the authority of the FCC. The filed rate doctrine barred claims based on fraud and misrepresentation when compensatory damages were sought.

The court affirmed the judgment of dismissal.