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Home Practice Areas D.C. Overview Telecommunications and Technology Law

Telecommunications and Technology Law

At Birch, Horton, Bittner and Cherot, our specialized experience and expertise in telecommunications law has proven instrumental in achieving our clients’ business and strategic objectives for more than twenty-five years. Our attorneys are skilled in the regulatory, litigation, legislative and transactional aspects of this highly technical practice area.

Our firm represents a number of major clients, including global manufacturers of telecommunications network and handset equipment, wireless carriers, MVNOs, incumbent and competitive local exchange carriers, cable companies and state public utilities commissions. We represent telecommunications clients in Federal Communications Commission (FCC) and state public utility proceedings, and in telecommunications litigation in the courts. As part of our multidimensional representation, we also have substantial experience in bankruptcy litigation involving telecommunications companies.

Our FCC practice involves a wide range of telecommunications policy, consumer, public safety, standards, spectrum and technical issues, including:

• Spectrum policy
• Regulation of IP-based services
• Intercarrier compensation
• Universal service fund support
• E911 and EAS
• LNP
• Disability access
• CALEA

We have significant experience with licensing and certification applications, waiver petitions and extensions of rules. The broad base of knowledge and experience in our telecommunications practice is a result of working with telecommunications companies that use or provide an array of technology platforms, including cable, VOIP, wireline and wireless.

BHBC has also represented clients before state public utility commissions nationwide in interconnection and certification cases (including contested cases), service area expansion, rate, rate design and rulemaking proceedings.

Our lawyers have litigated cases involving charges for calls carried by multiple parties (transiting traffic), billing disputes involving access charges and other matters, wireless equipment siting disputes and judicial review of FCC action.

We are particularly skilled in navigating complex agency statutes and rules to assist clients in developing solutions consistent with regulatory law. Among our achievements are:

• Significant waivers and extensions of FCC rules and mandates where clients’ circumstances have warranted special treatment.
• Removal of outdated regulations that have prevented comparable treatment for different technologies.
• Reversal of agency decisions of national significance for carrier and state public utility commission clients at both state supreme court and federal court of appeals levels. These decisions have caused agencies to reevaluate and redevelop policies in our clients’ interests.

In addition to our D.C. telecommunications practice, we maintain a substantial telecommunications practice in Anchorage. Our Anchorage lawyers add a depth of experience that may be drawn upon for larger projects, as well as projects relating specifically to Alaska. That office also maintains a broad and sophisticated corporate practice that has handled multi-million dollar transactions nationally and internationally, including complex telecommunications transactions.

Attorneys

• David E. Lampp
• James H. Lister
• Elisabeth H. Ross
• Charles (Chas) R. Eberle