Industries + Practices

Telecommunications and Media
Industry Team

Harris Beach has a long history representing telecommunications industry clients. In the wireless area, we drove groundbreaking litigation in interpreting the 1996 Telecommunications Act. This litigation related to the ability of municipal power authorities to regulate the siting of telecommunications towers and concluded with favorable results for our clients. Our Telecommunications team is led by a former chairman of the New York State Public Service Commission who, as head of one of the country’s leading state regulatory bodies on telecommunications, established numerous major policies and regulatory initiatives.

To address the complex business, technological, and regulatory challenges of the telecommunications industry, Harris Beach offers comprehensive legal services for all transactional, regulatory compliance, and litigation matters. We represent many companies, including those focused on wireless service, optics, cable, satellites, cellular telephones, internet, IP telephony, and WiMax, as well as manufacturers of communications equipment, companies that purchase and sell communications services, and broadcast radio and TV stations. In addition to transactional and regulatory matters, we represent cable television providers and telecommunications carriers on franchise, First Amendment, libel, and system development issues.

Our Telecommunications Industry Team counsels clients regarding franchise agreements, municipal ordinances, construction and use of dark fiber, zoning regulations, and state and federal statutes applicable to the industry. Our extensive experience enables us to advise on a wide range of issues such as negotiating vendor-financing agreements, executing mergers and acquisitions, managing equipment purchasing transactions, implementing contracts, securing capital funds for deployments of wireless networks, coordinating leases for multi-site tower placements, negotiating interconnection with incumbent carriers, registering and enforcing patents for manufacturers, selling fiber optic rights, preparing bankruptcy restructurings/ settlements, and much more. We also guide clients on government relations and strategic planning initiatives related to economic development, state and federal regulatory affairs, and policy decisions. In an environment with such rapidly evolving technologies, our strong knowledge of the technical, legal, and regulatory matters faced by telecommunications companies is valued by our clients. With them, we share extensive industry knowledge, identify emerging trends, and develop legal solutions to help them move ahead of issues and compete more effectively.

Harris Beach services include:

Regulatory Compliance and Oversight

To ensure compliance with federal telecommunications regulations and other laws, we counsel clients on all statutes governing the industry and provide advice regarding the Federal Communications Commission and state Public Service Commissions. Our attorneys address rulemaking, market-opening, and other competition issues in arbitration proceedings before state public utility commissions. We obtain authorizations for our clients to provide services in particular jurisdictions and assist with assignments of certificates.

Litigation and Defense

Our attorneys have earned a national reputation for effectively defending difficult and often highly-charged cases on behalf of some of the world’s largest companies, including international media companies. We successfully represented a cell phone manufacturer, serving as regional counsel in a national class action claiming a brain cancer link to cell phones. When faced with potentially high verdict cases, our attorneys achieve reasonable settlements or summary judgment while maintaining a low profile for our clients. We also assist clients with insurance litigation (including directors and officers policies), and subrogation actions.

Government Compliance and Investigations

To help companies face increasing governmental regulations and greater scrutiny of business operations, our team provides preventive counseling and helps implement effective compliance programs. We also have extensive experience representing clients in administrative, civil, and criminal proceedings. Our highly credentialed team’s strong prosecutorial and ethics backgrounds, including a former Presidentially-appointed United States Attorney, Chairman of the New York State Public Service Commission, New York State Deputy Attorney General, and Executive Director of the New York State Ethics Commission, have made Harris Beach the firm of choice organizations of all sizes call upon to handle their high risk, high visibility federal and state investigation and compliance matters.

Corporate and Tax Planning

From the formation of entity structures to the execution of contracts, our attorneys implement joint ventures, divestitures, mergers, and acquisitions. We counsel clients on all aspects of federal, state, and international taxation including federal excise tax issues. Our attorneys assist in the negotiation of franchise agreements, implementation of name changes, purchase and sale of broadcast station licenses, financial restructuring of distressed companies, and many other matters.

Commercial Real Estate, Construction, and Environmental

Construction and licensing of new facilities and stations is another way our attorneys assist clients in the telecommunications industry. We provide a full range of services, including negotiating leases and purchases of real estate, providing environmental assessments, preparing for state environmental reviews, and preparing all contracts associated with construction.

Zoning and Land Use

Our attorneys appear before state agencies and local planning and zoning boards to help our clients obtain special use permits, variances, and building permits for telecommunications facilities. We also offer legal counsel to private property owners in matters involving licenses, rights-of-way, and easements.

Intellectual Property

With the worldwide explosion in technology, protecting intellectual property (IP) is now a critical need. Harris Beach is at the forefront of counseling clients on IP protection as well as enforcing their IP property rights. We register trademarks and patents, assist in managing IP portfolios, help clients maximize IP assets through licensing, and litigate when needed. In both the United States and worldwide, we have successfully prosecuted patents in a wide variety of technologies.

Labor and Employment

Harris Beach handles all aspects of labor and employment law and litigation for telecommunications manufacturers and service providers alike, including occupational safety and health, employers’ rights, employment regulations, collective bargaining, negotiations, labor contract administration, employment discrimination, employee benefits, transitional liability for labor and pension obligations following acquisitions, and personnel policies. Our attorneys have extensive trial experience with all types of discrimination, including age, gender, sexual harassment, national origin, race, religion, and disability matters.