Administrative and Appellate Litigation 

Whether at an agency or in a courtroom, WBK attorneys bring deep industry knowledge and personal attention to all litigation matters. 

Administrative litigation before the FCC often involves very high stakes – for example, the potential for millions of dollars in damages, major competitive benefits for the complainant or defendant, requirements to carry cable programming, substantially higher or lower pole attachment rates, and, in some cases, even loss of spectrum licenses that are at the core of a company’s business.  WBK is regularly involved in these adjudicative matters before both the FCC and appellate courts. 

Clients ask WBK to handle FCC administrative cases because of our deep communications policy expertise and our success in litigating these cases before the Enforcement Bureau, Administrative Law Judges, and others, as well as in negotiating favorable settlements when appropriate. 

WBK’s substantial policy expertise and litigation experience also make us an attractive choice to handle communications-related appellate litigation.  We have represented clients acting as petitioners, intervenors, and amici in appeals running the gamut of communications law.  We have filed appellate and U.S. Supreme Court briefs and argued cases involving both FCC policy and rulemaking decisions and FCC administrative litigation.   

In the energy area, our attorneys have extensive experience litigating before state public utility commissions in numerous jurisdictions.  We know what motivates our clients, other players in the industry, and decision-makers, and this knowledge informs our approach to both negotiations and hearing strategy.  Our team of industry experts and former regulators brings a wealth of subject matter expertise to each matter, as well as the unique experience gained from serving as utility commissioners.  The firm has handled numerous energy appellate matters in state and federal courts, notably prevailing in a 9th Circuit appeal on behalf of the Montana Public Service Commission in a Public Utility Regulatory Policy Act complaint case.