Bezenek

A telephone long-distance carrier prevailed on fraud and conversion theories against Myron and Susan Bezenek—whose teenage sons employed computer technology in their efforts to crack plaintiff’s access and authorization codes and make long distance phone calls without paying for them—gamering a judgment, including attorney fees, just shy of $50,000. Defendants challenge the court’s determination that causes of action for fraud and conversion lie on these facts and complain of plaintiff’s failure to mitigate and prove damages. They also contend that the court erred in calculating damages based on the company’s own tariff on file with the Public Utilities Commission (PUC). Finally, defendants argue Civil Code section 1714.1 precludes damages based on conduct by a minor who is not their child and, in any event, limits damages to no more than $10,000.

I

Thrifty-Tel, Inc., provides long-distance telephone services. Subscribers’ telephones are programmed with a confidential access code and a six-digit authorization code that directs calls into Thrifty-Tel’s computerized switching network. An unauthorized user who knows both an access and an authorization code can make…