Sidley’s communications lawyers represent leading telecommunications and mass media companies before federal agencies and all levels of federal and state courts. We have represented these clients in proceedings before the U.S. Supreme Court and federal and state appeals courts on a wide range of issues, including constitutional law, administrative law, statutory construction and preemption. Sidley currently is representing one of its media clients in challenging the FCC’s indecency regulations for broadcasters.
Representative cases include:
- Verizon Communications, Inc. v. FCC, 535 U.S. 467 (2002), upholding TELRIC methodology for setting rates
- National Cable & Telecommunications Ass’n, Inc. v. Gulf Power Co., 534 U.S. 327 (2002), holding that the FCC has authority to set rates for attachments to telephone and electric poles that provide high speed Internet access at the same time as cable television
- AT&T Corp. v. Iowa Utilities Board, 525 U.S. 366 (1999), vacating portion of FCC’s rules governing unbundled access to network elements
- AT&T v. Central Office Telephone, Inc., 524 U.S. 214 (1998), holding that federal filed tariff doctrine preempts state law breach of contract and tortious interference claims
- AT&T Corp. v. JMC Telecom LLC, 470 F.3d 525 (3d Cir. 2006), holding that reseller’s state-law tort and breach of contract claims were barred by the filed tariff doctrine, that its breach of tariff claims were based on a misinterpretation of Commission regulations and that its federal antitrust claims failed to state a claim of a per se violation of the Sherman Act
- Qwest Corp. v. AT&T Corp., 479 F.3d 1206 (10th Cir. 2007), holding that federal filed rate doctrine does not preclude good faith settlement of dispute regarding applicability of federal tariff
- AT&T Corp. v. FCC, 394 F.3d 933 (D.C. Cir. 2005), holding that AT&T’s tariff on resales of toll-free 800 telephone service permitted it to deny reseller’s request for transfer of traffic
- Prometheus Radio Project v. FCC, 373 F.3d 372 (3d Cir. 2004), reversing portions of FCC’s media ownership rules
- AT&T Communications of Illinois, Inc. v. Illinois Bell Telephone Co., 349 F.3d 402 (7th Cir. 2003), holding that Illinois statute mandating methodology that state public utility commission had to use in setting rate that local telephone company could charge competitor for use of its telephone network was preempted by federal Communications Act
- Boomer v. AT&T Corp., 309 F.3d 404 (7th Cir. 2002), holding that federal Communications Act preempted customer’s state law challenges to validity of arbitration clause in consumer service agreement