Judge approves class-action status for lawsuit against cable TV

SPARTANBURG, S.C. -- A judge approved class-action status for a lawsuit accusing cable television company Charter Communications of requiring South Carolina customers to rent unnecessary equipment or pay a bogus wire maintenance fee.

Circuit Judge Don Beatty also placed no limit in his ruling Thursday on how much Charter's 250,000 customers in the state may recover.

Lawyers for the original plaintiffs have said Charter could be ordered to pay tens of millions of dollars in a class-action suit.

Nikki Nicholls and Geraldine Barber won their individual lawsuit by default in September when a circuit judge found procedural errors by Charter's attorneys, including failure to file a formal answer to the suit.

Charter's attorney, Billy Gunn, has said the company has several options, including allowing the case to run its course and then turning to the state Court of Appeals.