Michael Bennet has been advocating for and advising companies across the communications spectrum for over 30 years. Michael began his career in the pre-divestiture world as a broadcast attorney assisting radio and television stations with their licensing and transactional needs, as well as litigating in comparative hearings, before expanding his practice to servicing public utilities, petroleum companies, and providers of wireline and wireless telecommunications and broadband services.
As a founding member of a successful boutique telecommunications law firm known for strongly defending its clients’ interests for over 20 years, Michael has a wealth of experience serving domestic and international wireline, wireless and broadband telecommunications carriers, as well as commercial and noncommercial broadcasters. He guides clients through all aspects of regulatory compliance, including structuring business transactions that comply with federal and state regulations, and has steered clients to successful outcomes in both forward and reverse spectrum auctions.
Michael has worked extensively in all facets of E911 compliance and advocacy, at both the federal and state levels, and regularly assists and represents companies in formal and informal proceedings before the Federal Communication Commission’s Enforcement Bureau. Michael advises companies on Lifeline and Universal Service Fund issues and represents associations, corporations, cooperatives, universities, and entrepreneurs in FCC rulemaking proceedings and licensing proceedings, as well as advising entities interested in the use of unlicensed spectrum. Michael has represented various trade associations in proceedings before the FCC and the US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit and has represented companies before state public utility commissions.
Any result the lawyer or law firm may have achieved on behalf of clients in other matters does not necessarily indicate similar results can be obtained for other clients.
- Developed and executed the FCC auction strategy resulting in a noncommercial broadcast television client obtaining $157 million from the federal government, while retaining its broadcast license.
- Assisted numerous wireless telecommunications companies in negotiating settlements with the FCC’s Enforcement Bureau on various issues that resulted in substantial reductions in the financial penalty originally proposed by the FCC
- Successfully defended wireless telecommunications company against a $100,000 penalty sought by the FCC’s Enforcement Bureau.
- Participated in FCC rulemakings on behalf of wireless carrier trade association, persuading the agency to modify some of its proposed regulations.
- Obtained numerous waivers of FCC rules for companies seeking to avoid stringent regulatory obligations.
