The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) voted on April 25, 2024 to reinstate its net neutrality rules by reclassifying broadband internet access service (BIAS) as a “telecommunications service” under Title II of the...more
5/7/2024
/ Broadband ,
Broadband Internet Access Services (BIAS) ,
FCC ,
Internet ,
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) ,
Net Neutrality ,
New Regulations ,
Popular ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Telecommunications
On December 15, 2023, after more than three years of consideration, and amid the largest ever federal investment in broadband, the Federal Communications Commission (“FCC”) unanimously adopted a new pole-attachment order that...more
After more than three years of consideration, amidst the largest federal and state investment in broadband deployment, and anticipating disputes between broadband providers and utility pole owners concerning the terms and...more
On July 14, 2023, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit issued an administrative stay of an order that would prohibit certain federal officials and agencies from communicating with social media companies on content...more
On June 13, 2022, the FCC provided notice that the State of Florida has become the 24th state (including the District of Columbia) to certify state-level regulatory jurisdiction over rates, terms, and conditions for pole...more
On May 26, 2021, a Sixth Circuit panel rejected challenges by numerous municipalities to a 2019 order by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) that most “in kind” (non-cash) contributions required by cable franchisees...more
On August 12, 2020, a Ninth Circuit panel affirmed three orders issued in 2018 by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to promote infrastructure investment and broadband deployment, including 5G small cell nodes.
In...more
At the end of the Supreme Court’s most recent term, the Court released its long-awaited ruling in PDR Network, LLC v. Carlton & Harris Chiropractic, Inc., 139 S. Ct. 2051 (June 20, 2019)—a case that could have carried...more
9/4/2019
/ Administrative Orders ,
Administrative Procedure ,
Appellate Courts ,
Binding Precedent ,
Dismissals ,
Due Process ,
Exclusive Jurisdiction ,
FCC ,
Hobbs Act ,
Interpretive Rule ,
Judicial Review ,
Legislative Rule ,
PDR Network LLC v Carlton & Harris Chiropractic Inc ,
Remand ,
Reversal ,
SCOTUS ,
Set-Asides ,
TCPA ,
Unsolicited Advertisements ,
Unsolicited Faxes ,
Vacated
On Thursday, August 1, 2019, the FCC took several actions to address persistent, decades-long efforts by local governments to convert their control over local rights-of-way into ever-increasing revenue streams from cable...more
On Friday, February 1, 2019, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit held a marathon oral argument in Mozilla Corp. v. FCC, No. 18-1051 (D.C. Cir. Feb. 22, 2018), in which various petitioners challenged the Federal...more
2/5/2019
/ Administrative Procedure Act ,
Appeals ,
Arbitrary and Capricious ,
Broadband ,
Common Carriers ,
FCC ,
Federal Communications Act ,
Internet ,
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) ,
Net Neutrality ,
Open Internet Rules ,
Oral Argument ,
Preemption ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Repeal ,
Statutory Interpretation ,
Telecommunications ,
Title I ,
Title II
On Tuesday, the Supreme Court decided to review a case that potentially carries far reaching ramifications for litigation under the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (“TCPA”), which places restrictions on phone and fax...more
11/16/2018
/ Advertising ,
Appeals ,
Chevron Deference ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Dismissals ,
FCC ,
Hobbs Act ,
Motion to Dismiss ,
Putative Class Actions ,
Reversal ,
Statutory Interpretation ,
TCPA ,
Telemarketing ,
Unsolicited Faxes
Earlier this week, the United States Supreme Court denied requests by the Trump Administration and telecommunications industry players to vacate a prior decision by the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals upholding the Federal...more
11/8/2018
/ Appeals ,
Broadband ,
Denial of Rehearing ,
FCC ,
Internet ,
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) ,
Mootness ,
Motion to Vacate ,
Net Neutrality ,
Open Internet Rules ,
Petition for Writ of Certiorari ,
Telecommunications ,
Title II ,
Trump Administration
During its most recent Term, the Supreme Court held in Lucia v. SEC that the administrative law judges (“ALJs”) that preside over adjudications at the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) are “Officers of the United...more
7/18/2018
/ Adjudicatory Process ,
Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) ,
Administrative Proceedings ,
Appeals ,
Appointments Clause ,
Constitutional Challenges ,
Enforcement Actions ,
FCC ,
Final Written Decisions ,
Lucia v SEC ,
Officers of the United States ,
Remand ,
Reversal ,
SCOTUS ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Violations ,
Special Trial Judges (STJs)
Promoting infrastructure investment and broadband deployment has been a top priority for Chairman Ajit Pai’s FCC. On July 12, 2018, the Chairman took a significant stride in advancing his agenda by releasing a draft report...more
This week, the Federal Communications Commission’s (“FCC’s”) Restoring Internet Freedom Order took effect, rolling back the public-utility style regulation of Internet service providers (“ISPs”) pursuant to title II of the...more
6/14/2018
/ Bright-Line Rule ,
Broadband ,
Communications Act of 1934 ,
FCC ,
Internet ,
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) ,
Net Neutrality ,
Open Internet Rules ,
Preemption ,
Public Utility ,
State Regulators ,
Telecommunications ,
Title II ,
Utilities Sector
On March 16, 2018, the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit issued its long awaited decision in ACA International v. FCC, in which a group of petitioners across a spectrum of industries sought...more
6/4/2018
/ Arbitrary and Capricious ,
ATDS ,
Auto-Dialed Calls ,
Comment Period ,
Debt Collection ,
FCC ,
Opt-Outs ,
Proposed Rules ,
Public Comment ,
Robocalling ,
Safe Harbors ,
Smartphones ,
TCPA ,
Telemarketing
Have the GOP’s Hopes for Enacting the Fairness in Class Action Litigation Act Been Dashed? – Passed in March 2017 by the U.S. House of Representatives, the Fairness in Class Action Litigation Act of 2017, H.R. 985, has...more
3/1/2018
/ Article III ,
Ascertainable Class ,
Attorney's Fees ,
Cell Phones ,
Class Action ,
Class Certification ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Credit Unions ,
Declaratory Rulings ,
Equitable Relief ,
FCC ,
Federal Rule 12(b)(1) ,
FRCP 23 ,
Motion to Dismiss ,
Petition for Writ of Certiorari ,
Predominance Requirement ,
Prior Express Consent ,
Putative Class Actions ,
Robocalling ,
Spokeo v Robins ,
Standing ,
Subject Matter Jurisdiction ,
Summary Judgment ,
Superiority Claims ,
TCPA ,
Text Messages ,
The Fairness in Class Action Litigation Act of 2015 ,
Vaccinations ,
Written Consent
The Federal Communications Commission (“FCC”) asserted broad regulatory authority over the Internet and broadband Internet service providers when it reclassified Internet access service as a “common carrier” service under...more
9/9/2016
/ Broadband ,
Common Carriers ,
Communications Act of 1934 ,
FCC ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
FTC Act ,
Internet ,
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) ,
Memorandum of Understanding ,
Net Neutrality ,
Section 5 ,
Telecommunications
The FCC’s February 2015 meeting yielded two significant and controversial orders premised on the agency’s authority under Section 706 of the Communications Act: its much-publicized Open Internet Order, and its less-publicized...more
Consumer advocacy group Public Knowledge recently filed a petition with the Federal Communications Commission (“FCC”) challenging a multi-system operator’s (“MSO”) online video service as violative of conditions imposed as...more
On May 20, 2015, the Federal Communications Commission (“FCC”) released an Enforcement Advisory notifying providers that the agency’s recent Open Internet Order “applies the core customer privacy protections of Section 222 of...more
The FCC voted recently 3-2 along party lines to promulgate new rules necessary to protect the “Open Internet.” At the core of the Commission’s action lies its decision to reclassify Internet services as a...more
Courts that have confronted the application of the “prior express consent” requirement of the Telephone Consumer Protection Act, see 47 U.S.C. § 227 – a.k.a., the TCPA – have in the main taken their cues from and adhered to...more
In Thomas v. Taco Bell Corp., No. 12-56458 (9th Cir. July 2, 2014) the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals recently held that Taco Bell, one defendant in a putative class action lawsuit alleging violations of the Telephone...more
As federal courts continue to grapple with the explosion of litigation brought by plaintiffs under the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (“TCPA”), the Federal Communications Commission (“FCC”) is increasingly being called...more