With the Supreme Court’s recent decision to overrule Chevron deference, coupled with its other decisions addressing the review of agency decisions, telecom regulations and policies now face increased judicial scrutiny, leading to more litigation and uncertainty. 

In their webinar “The Telecom Industry Post Chevron – What It Means for your Business”, Communications Infrastructure Litigation Chair T. Scott Thompson, Technology, Communications & Media Chair Angela Kung, and Member Daniel Reing explored the implications of the decision for the telecom industry, and offered insights on how companies can adapt to this significant change. 

The attorneys set the stage and examined the details of four key cases: Ohio et al. v. Environmental Protection Agency, Securities and Exchange Commission v. Jarkesy et al., Loper Bright Enterprises v. Raimondo, and Corner Post, Inc. v. Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System.

Discussing the potential impact on current and future appeals, and noting that there are currently 40 pending appeals of FCC actions, the attorneys highlighted that the impact of Loper Bright depends on which part of the Communications Act (or other statute) is in question and clarified that Corner Post should have little impact on FCC appeals, as they fall under the Hobbs Act.

The potential ramifications on commission proceedings were explained, indicating that we might see parties litigating issues that have historically been accepted within the FCC’s authority, particularly in areas like spectrum policy.

The webinar concluded with Members sharing insight into how companies and practitioners should approach advocacy in the post-Chevron landscape.

This is the second installment in a series of Mintz-hosted webinars titled “Deciding Factors: Analyzing the Recent Supreme Court Term.” The series focuses on the effects of the Court’s recent decisions (including Ohio v. EPA and Loper Bright) and their impact on heavily regulated industries and the federal regulatory agencies that govern them. Additional dates and times are forthcoming.