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23 December 20205 minute read

DLA Piper’s Telecom practice named a Law360 2020 Practice Group of the Year

DLA Piper is pleased to announce that Law360 has named the firm’s Telecom practice a Practice Group of the Year for 2020.

Law360 highlighted DLA Piper’s role as lead regulatory counsel for Deutsche Telekom and T-Mobile in securing approval for T-Mobile’s US$56 billion merger with Sprint. Nancy Victory and Michael Senkowski, co-chairs of DLA Piper’s global Telecom practice, told Law360 that the firm was tasked with demonstrating to regulators that the T-Mobile-Sprint merger would benefit consumers through increased competition, improved access to high-speed service and lower prices.

“The challenge was to show that the business plan was for real. It wasn't just a story made up for regulatory approval,” Senkowski told the publication. “It required very clearly telling them that story in a way that was going to ensure very expeditious approval. And that's what we were able to achieve," Victory added.

 

The publication also recognized the firm’s work to help wireless industry trade group CTIA develop a plan to repurpose 280 MHz of satellite spectrum for mobile services through a Federal Communications Commission auction set to begin this month, a “mammoth achievement that showcased the firm's talent for offering in-the-weeds engineering expertise alongside robust legal and regulatory smarts.”

 

"That was a great example of the type of work our group does, where they do a melding of the legal and the engineering and sort of, I would say, the political [aspects]," Victory told Law360.

 

Law360 also noted the firm’s work to help Globalstar obtain the necessary authorizations to use its spectrum to offer high-speed terrestrial broadband in multiple jurisdictions worldwide.

 

“It involves a lot of work between our offices, local regulators, [and] the US,” DLA Piper partner Edward “Smitty” Smith told Law360. “A lot of times, these regulatory bodies like to make sure that they're in alignment, particularly in the EU. We have to do a lot of cross-coordination.”

 

DLA Piper's Telecom practice is built on in-depth knowledge of the commercial, transactional, technical, legal and regulatory issues associated with providing telecommunications services and products, including emerging IoT devices and capabilities. With telecom lawyers around the globe, the team is well positioned to assist clients with multi-country and global deals as well as with regional and global strategies for product development and market entry. DLA Piper’s experience covers the full spectrum of developed and emerging markets and the complete range of technologies, including wireless, telephony, broadband, Internet, satellite and submarine cables.

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