<P> States that currently require that all parties consent to the recording include: California, Connecticut, Florida, Hawaii (in general a one - party state, but requires two - party consent if the recording device is installed in a private place), Illinois (debated, see next section), Maryland, Massachusetts (only "secret" recordings are banned, but is the only state without a "public location" exception), Montana (requires notification only), Nevada, New Hampshire, Pennsylvania, and Washington (however, section 3 of the Washington law states that permission is given if any of the parties announces that they will be recording the call in a reasonable manner if the recording contains that announcement). </P> <P> Other states (and the District of Columbia) not listed above require only that one party consent to the recording . </P> <P> Illinois courts have ruled that "eavesdropping" only applies to conversations that the party otherwise would not have been able to hear, thereby effectively making it a one - party consent state . However, some confusion exists and debate over the law . </P> <P> The Michigan Court of Appeals ruled in 1982 that participants in a conversation may record a discussion without getting the permission of other participants . The ruling stated that eavesdropping only applies to: "a third party not otherwise involved in the conversation being eavesdropped on". This is because the law uses the wording, "the private discourse of others", rather than the wording, "the private discourse of others or with others". Michigan law is often misinterpreted as requiring the consent of all parties to a conversation . </P>

Is it illegal to record calls without permission uk