Case Highlights

These are a sample of representative matters from my 30 years of high-tech litigation, lobbying and business consultation:

• Antitrust and regulatory attorney for Sports Fans Coalition, Inc. in challenge to a proposed merger of Comcast and Time Warner Cable. Applications of Comcast Corp. and Time Warner Cable, Inc., MB Docket No. 14-57 (FCC 2014).
• Trial counsel to leading commercial bank on cutting-edge antitrust counterclaim involving allegations of monopolization and patent misuse against the largest U.S. “patent troll” entity. Intellectual Ventures, Inc. v. Capital One Financial Corp., No. 13-cv-00740 (E.D. Va. April 16, 2014).
• Secured early pre-merger waiting period termination from DOJ and FTC, without a “second request,” in more than $1B worth of M&A deals involving cable television set-top boxes, automobile fleet transportation, hospital-physician practice acquisitions and other markets, with coordinated international merger clearances in Russia, China, Canada, Brazil, Mexico and other countries.
• Outside counsel for CCIA in connection with Justice Department review of the ASCAP and BMI music licensing antitrust consent decrees. United States v. ASCAP, 41 Civ. 1395 (S.D.N.Y.).
• Appellate and Supreme Court counsel for Consumer Federation of America in successful defense of case challenging the so-called Red Lion doctrine — constitutional basis for licensing and economic regulation of television and radio broadcasting. Tribune Co. v. FCC, 652 F.3d 431 (3d Cir. 2011), cert. denied, 133 S. Ct. 64 (2012).
• Outside general counsel to international streaming television start-up, mobile advertising content venture and for San Francisco-based Health Technology Forum, an online-centric forum for innovation, networking and funding of healthcare IT companies.
• Successful appellate reversal of judgment and attorneys’ fee award against client on communications regulatory issue of first impression. GCB Comms., Inc. v. U.S. South Comms., Inc., 650 F.3d 1257, 53 Comm. Reg. (P&F) ¶ 176 (9th Cir. 2011).
• Washington, D.C. counsel to leading U.S. provider of encrypted enterprise email on privacy, IT security and health information processing regulation.
• Prevailed on appeal in precedent-setting case concerning preemption of state statutes-of-limitation under cellular amendments to the Communications Act of 1934. Castro v. Collecto Inc. dba Collection Co. of Am., 634 F.3d 779, 52 Comm. Reg. (P&F) ¶ 698 (5th Cir. 2011).
• Supreme Court counsel-of-record for national IT trade association as amicus in major IP case challenging scope of “business method” patents. Bilski v. Kappos, 130 S. Ct. 3218 (2010).
• Defense counsel for national collection agency in successful dismissal of Fair Debt Collection Practices Act class action lawsuit on post-certification reconsideration. Castro v. Collecto Inc. dba Collection Co. of Am., 668 F. Supp. 2d 950 (W.D. Tex. 2009), aff’d, 643 F.2d 779 (5th Cir. 2011).
• Advised “sell-side” investment banks UBS Securities, MorganStanley Research and arbitrageurs on IP and antitrust issues arising in connection with Microsoft-Yahoo! takeover, Google-Yahoo search advertising joint venture and Broadcom v. Qualcomm patent infringement litigation (2008-09).
• Represented premiere high-tech trade association in first appellate test of FCC’s regulatory authority regarding Voice-over-Internet Protocol technology. Vonage Holdings Corp and CCIA v. FCC, 489 F.3d 1232 (D.C. Cir. 2007).
• Lead litigation counsel in series of precedent-setting cases arising from interaction between legacy telecommunications access charges and new, IP-enabled technologies. Eg., Global NAPs, Inc. v. Verizon New Eng., Inc., 489 F.3d 13 (1st Cir. 2007); Verizon New York, Inc. v. Global NAPs, Inc., 463 F. Supp. 2d 330 (E.D.N.Y. 2006); S. New Eng. Tel. Co. v. Global NAPs, Inc., 482 F. Supp. 2d 2, 458 F. Supp. 2d 23 (D. Conn. 2006)
• Lead litigation counsel in successful defense of pro se and consumer antitrust and fair trade class actions brought against largest provider of inmate communications services. E.g., Entzi v. Redmann, 485 F.3d 998 (8th Cir. 2007); Judd v. AT&T, Inc., et al., 136 Wn. App. 1022 (Wash. App. 2006); Ray v. Evercom Sys., 2006 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 61132 (D.S.C. 2006); Valdez v. New Mexico, 54 P.3d 71 (N.M. Sp. Ct. 2002); Daleure v. Kentucky, 119 F. Supp. 2d 683 (W.D. Ky. 2000).
• Represented leading government IT security company in successful defense of software copyright and trade secret misappropriation claims brought by principal competitor. SecureInfo Corp. v. Telos Corp., 387 F. Supp. 2d 593 (E.D. Va. 2006).
• Transactional counsel to Bermuda-based international satellite company in negotiating license and operating agreements with national governments and International Telecommunications Union (ITU).
• Lead litigation counsel in antitrust actions by now-defunct wireless broadband provider against defendant class of commercial real estate owners and trade association. Winstar Comms. LLC v. Equity Office Properties, Inc., 2006-1 Trade Cas. (CCH) 75,154 (2d Cir. 2006).
• Counsel for leading communications trade association in appeal of telecom antitrust case by competitive broadband provider. Covad Comms. Co. v. Bell Atlantic Corp., 398 F.3d 686, 407 F.3d 1220 (D.C. Cir. 2005).
• Appellate counsel to Consumers Union and Consumer Federation of America in reversal of FCC’s deregulation of newspaper-broadcast cross-ownership and related media concentration rules. Prometheus Radio Project v. FCC, 373 F.3d 372 (3d Cir. 2005).
• Chief litigation counsel and strategic advisor to plaintiff in $130 million jury verdict on contract, securities and fraud claims against former equity partner. Final Analysis Comm Servs. v. General Dynamics Corp., No. 8:03-cv-307 (D. Md. 2005).
• Appellate counsel to competitive software industry associations (ProComp, CCIA and SIIA) — along with former Judges Robert H. Bork and Kenneth Starr — in challenge to federal government’s antitrust settlement with Microsoft Corp. Massachusetts v. Microsoft Corp., 373 F.3d 1199 (D.C. Cir. 2004).
• Appellate counsel to lead complainant and intervenor in successful defense of FCC-imposed merger conditions and sanctions against Bell Company. SBC Comms., Inc. v. FCC, 373 F.3d 140 (D.C. Cir. 2004).
• Corporate counsel to largest global CRM software company in revising products for compliance with privacy and security requirements of the Health Information Privacy & Portability Act (HIPPA) and the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act (2003-05).
• Represented leading Internet search provider in connection with export of high-performance computing equipment (HPC) for foreign enterprise customers (2002-04).
• Trial and appellate counsel to class of competitive local exchange carriers in successful administrative and damages claims against dominant long-distance company for blocking of switched network traffic. AT&T Corp. v. FCC, 292 F.3d 808 (D.C. Cir. 2002).
• Administrative and appellate counsel to competitive carriers in challenge to FCC’s “reciprocal compensation” regulatory scheme. WorldCom, Inc. v. FCC, 288 F.3d 429 (D.C. Cir. 2002).
• Pro bono appellate counsel to National Association of State Utility Consumer Advocates in successful challenge to FCC preemption of access charge and universal service regulation. Office of Pub. Util. Counsel v. FCC, 265 F.3d 313 (5th Cir. 2002).
• SEC regulatory counsel for initial public offerings (IPOs) of  Echelon Corp., Rhythms NetConnections, Inc., WildBlue Communications, Inc., Telocity, Inc., U.S. Web Corp. and DSL.net Inc. (1998-2001).
• Represented MCI and MCI WorldCom on telecommunications numbering matters as delegate to the FCC’s North American Numbering Council (1996-2001).
• Appellate counsel to Computer Professionals for Social Responsibility in amicus curiae opposition to enforcement of French judgment regarding search engine filtering. Yahoo!, Inc. v. La Ligue Contre Le Racisme et L’Antisemitisme, 169 F. Supp. 2d 1181 (N.D. Cal. 2001).
• Principal lobbyist for the Computer & High-Tech Coalition (CHTC) and the DSL Access Telecommunications Alliance (DATA) on broadband and interoperability issues before both Congress and the FCC (1995-2000).
• Counsel to competitive Internet domain name registrar in antitrust litigation against the U.S. government and its top-level domain contractor. Name.Space, Inc. v. Network Solutions, Inc., 202 F.3d 573 (2d Cir. 2000).
• Represented several Web gaming start-ups on compliance with federal gambling and lottery laws, Internet jurisdiction, authentication and financial issues (1999-2002).
• Legislative and appellate counsel to Echelon Corp. in connection with implementation of FCC’s rules for cable television set-top box compatibility. General Instrument Corp. v. FCC, 213 F.3d 724 (D.C. Cir. 2000).
• Antitrust counsel to Netscape Communications Corp. in successful defense of first antitrust case arising out of then sui generis “Internet advertising” market. GTE New Media Services, Inc. v. BellSouth Corp., et al., 21 F. Supp. 2d 27 (D.D.C. 1998), 199 F.3d 1343 (D.C. Cir. 2000).
• Counsel to leading U.S. prepaid communications association in connection with promulgation and appeal of FCC’s payphone compensation rules. International Telecard Ass’n v. FCC, 166 F.3d 387 (D.C. Cir.), cert. denied, 526 U.S. 1146 (1999).
• Appellate counsel for Consumer Federation of America in first federal appeal interpreting the Telecommunications Act of 1996. Iowa Utilities Board v. FCC, 120 F.3d 753 (8th Cir. 1997), rev’d in part, AT&T Corp. v. Iowa Utilities Board, 119 S. Ct. 721 (1999).
• Counsel to MCI in first federal trial court litigation regarding interconnection agreements under Section 252 of the 1996 Act. MCI Telecommunications Corp. v. Pacific Bell, 1998 US Dist. LEXIS 17556 (N.D. Cal. 1998).
• Represented Netscape in landmark FCC proceedings implementing universal service, E-Rate and unbundling and first-ever regulatory challenge to Internet telephony, a/k/a the “ACTA petition” (1996-99).
• Lead counsel for MachOne Communications (later Telocity, Inc.) in successful rulemaking petition for implementation of DSL “line sharing” by incumbent LECs (1997-99).
• Lead trial and appellate counsel to plaintiff challenging validity of so-called “filed rate doctrine” in aftermath of long-distance telephone deregulation. Richman Bros. Records, Inc. v. US Sprint Communication Co., 953 F.2d 1431 (3d Cir. 1991), cert. denied, 112 S. Ct. 3056 (1992), aff’d Richman Bros. Records, Inc. v. FCC, 124 F.3d 1302 (D.C. Cir. 1997).