I’m always looking for side jobs or easy ways to make some extra money on the side. Turns out that you might be able to make a decent amount of money by suing companies who violate the do not call list legislation, and what could be more fun than suing a telemarketing company. Generally I have a personal aversion to lawsuits and think that it’s gotten entirely out of control in recent history, but in this case I’m all for it.

It turns out that the Telephone Consumer Protection Act allows consumers themselves to receive $500 for each violation. This means if the company calls you 7 times you can sue them for $3,500 and you the victim of the unwanted calls gets to keep the money. Now granted there are court costs involved, but the good news is you don’t need a high priced lawyer, you can simply file a complaint in small claims court, which can often be done online and in very little time.

I came across this information in an article on MSNBC called MAKING TELEMARKETERS PAY — IN CASH The article profiles André-Tascha Lammé who has won over $6,000 in judgements against telemarketers in just three cases.

He’s not a lawyer, but by filing in small claims court, he’s spent no more than $100 in court fees and scarcely more than an hour of his time on any case. Now he wants you to do it, too.

Suing a telemarketing firm might sound like a paperwork headache beyond the means of most people, but it’s not, said Lamm. Small claims court papers are easy to file, he said. In Sacramento County, he doesn’t even have to walk down to the courthouse. He can file online.

“It only took me five or 10 minutes to file,” he said. “No more than a half-hour total.”

In two prior cases, Lammé didn’t even have to go to court. Two other companies settled with him for about $2,500 after he filed his case.

The article goes on to talk about Lammé’s website that he set up to help teach people how to fight the telemarketers at KillTheCalls.com.

Anyway if you have a disdain for telemarketers and want to make some extra cash maybe this idea is for you.