Field Law Group

admin — Fri, 09 Dec 2011 14:25:34 +0000

In 2003, Mr. Witte and Mr. Field negotiated and arbitrated a comprehensive ICA between Verizon North and TelNet Worldwide, Inc. The docket filings and MPSC Orders issued in the case can be viewed at:

http://efile.mpsc.state.mi.us/efile/viewcase.php?casenum=13931&submit.x=0&submit.y=0

The arbitration notably produced the first arbitrated comprehensive ICA for Verizon North’s Michigan territories. In addition, the ICA included several negotiated rates that were lower than rates Verizon otherwise offered in Michigan. For example, the rate for a DS1 circuit was approximately two-thirds lower than otherwise available.

Verizon appealed two issues it had lost before the MPSC to the U. S. District Court. In its appeal, Verizon North was represented by law firms from Detroit, Philadelphia, and Washington, DC. Field Law Group prevailed on both issues. The District Court’s Order can be viewed at:

https://ecf.miwd.uscourts.gov/doc1/0991861186

For years, the TelNet ICA remained the only arbitrated ICA in Michigan that CLECs providing service in Verizon North territory could adopt.

admin — Fri, 09 Dec 2011 03:20:59 +0000

In August 2006, Field Law Group filed a complaint against AT&T Michigan on behalf of CMC Telecom and other parties. Under federal law, AT&T Michigan was required to make available the same telecommunications services it was offering to its own retail customers, to competitive providers at wholesale rates. However, AT&T negotiated individual contracts with many of its business customers. These individual customer contracts typically contained better retail pricing than what AT&T otherwise made generally available. CMC Telecom and its co-plaintiffs claimed that AT&T was not making available to them the opportunity to resell the favorably-priced retail services that AT&T was providing to several of its own customers via such individually negotiated contracts.

In 2007, the Michigan Public Service Commission (“MPSC”) declined to rule that AT&T’s actions violated federal law. CMC appealed to the Federal District Court in the Western District of Michigan. The District Court affirmed the MPSC’s ruling. However, Field Law Group, representing CMC Telecom, pursued a further appeal to the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeal. The Sixth Circuit reversed the MPSC and the U.S. District Court on March 8, 2011, finding that AT&T’s failure to offer the individually-priced services to CMC at wholesale for resale purposes violated federal law. The Sixth Circuit’s Decision can be viewed at: http://www.sixthcircuitappellateblog.com/CMC%20Telecom%20v%20%20MI%20Bell%20Telephone%20Co.pdf

The Sixth Circuit remanded the case to the U.S. District Court, where it remains pending.

On October 4, 2011, the MPSC modified its 2007 Order and entered a revised Order, consistent with the Sixth Circuit’s decision, requiring AT&T to offer its individually-priced contracts to competitive providers for resale. The MPSC’ order can be viewed at: http://efile.mpsc.state.mi.us/efile/docs/14975/0102.pdf

admin — Mon, 05 Dec 2011 18:32:12 +0000

Since the enactment of the 1996 Federal Telecommunications Act, the attorneys at Field Law Group (“FLG”) have assisted competitive local telephone and telecommunications companies negotiate and arbitrate interconnection agreements (“ICAs”) with dominant incumbent carriers. For example:

In 2000, Mr. Field negotiated and arbitrated an interconnection agreement between Coast to Coast Telecommunications and Ameritech Michigan. Mr. Field prevailed on all arbitrated issues. The Michigan Public Service Commission (“MPSC”) Order can be viewed at :
http://www.dleg.state.mi.us/mpsc/orders/comm/2000/u-12382.pdf

The Coast to Coast ICA became one of the most frequently adopted ICAs by CLECs operating in Ameritech territories.

In 2003, Mr. Witte and Mr. Field negotiated and arbitrated a comprehensive ICA between Verizon North and TelNet Worldwide, Inc. The docket filings and MPSC Orders issued in the case can be viewed at:
http://efile.mpsc.state.mi.us/efile/viewcase.php?casenum=13931&submit.x=0&submit.y=0

The arbitration notably produced the first arbitrated comprehensive ICA for Verizon North’s Michigan territories. In addition, the ICA included several negotiated rates that were lower than rates Verizon otherwise offered in Michigan. For example, the rate for a DS1 circuit was approximately two-thirds lower than otherwise available.

Verizon appealed two issues it had lost before the MPSC to the U. S. District Court. In its appeal, Verizon North was represented by law firms from Detroit, Philadelphia, and Washington, DC. Field Law Group prevailed on both issues. The District Court’s Order can be viewed at:

https://ecf.miwd.uscourts.gov/doc1/0991861186

For years, the TelNet ICA remained the only arbitrated ICA in Michigan that CLECs providing service in Verizon North territory could adopt.

From 2004 to 2007, Mr. Field engaged in an extended negotiation between Climax Telephone Company and SBC Michigan. The docket filings and MPSC Orders issued in the case can be viewed at:
http://efile.mpsc.state.mi.us/efile/viewcase.php?casenum=14229&submit.x=0&submit.y=0

In 2009, Mr. Field and Mr. Jiang represented a coalition of seven CLECs to renegotiate and arbitrate the TelNet/Verizon ICA that had been approved in 2005 in MPSC Case No. U-13931. With added improvements, this arbitration extended the favorable ICA that had resulted from the previous case. See:
http://efile.mpsc.state.mi.us/efile/docs/15773/0028.pdf

In 2010, Field Law Group assisted TC3 Telecom negotiate ICAs with four rural independent ILECs, Deerfield Farmers Telephone Company (MPSC Case No. U-16471), Sand Creek Telephone Company (MPSC Case No. U-16497), Ogden Telephone Company (MPSC Case No. U-16470); and Frontier-Michigan (MPSC Case No. U-16783).

Also in 2010, Mr. Field and Mr. Gensch commenced ICA negotiations with AT&T Michigan on behalf of a coalition of ten CLECs. The arbitration petition was filed on October 24, 2011, and can be viewed at:
http://efile.mpsc.state.mi.us/efile/docs/16906/0001.pdf

The MPSC is scheduled to issue its Order no later than February 16, 2012.

admin — Mon, 05 Dec 2011 18:25:48 +0000

Field Law Group represented a number of CLECs as the only active industry participants in Verizon’s most recent cost study filed in Michigan before the Michigan Public Service Commission, MPSC Case No. U-15210. Verizon’s original filing included 2 Wire Analog and xDSL Loop costs of $34.44 per month, and a DS-1 Transport Facility Per Air Line Mile cost of $6.35. The advocacy of Field Law Group and its expert, Dr. Robert Loube of Rolka Loube Saltzer Associates, contributed to an order by the MPSC requiring revisions to Verizon’s filed cost study. Such revisions resulted in reducing Verizon’s 2 Wire Analog and xDSL Loop costs to $21.44 per month, and reducing Verizon’s DS-1 Transport Facility Per Air Line Mile cost to $1.17 per month. In addition, the MPSC limited Verizon’s increase in non-recurring charges from its previous cost case to 10%, and required Verizon to reduce any new non-recurring charges by 50%.

As a result of the lower costs approved by the MPSC in this case, the viability of competition in Verizon service territories was dramatically enhanced. The MPSC Order is available at http://efile.mpsc.state.mi.us/efile/docs/15210/0146.pdf.

admin — Mon, 05 Dec 2011 18:09:45 +0000

In 2003, SBC Michigan made an offer to Michigan competitive carriers to enter into a “mutual waiver agreement.” Both SBC Michigan and the competitive carriers had long-term contracts with their business customers requiring the customer to pay significant termination penalties if the customer dropped its service prior to the end of the contract and switched to another carrier. Under the Mutual Waiver Agreement, both SBC Michigan and a competitive carrier would agree to waive the early termination charges in their customers’ long-term contracts if a customer wished, before the end of their contract, to switch from SBC Michigan to the competitive carrier or from the competitive carrier to SBC Michigan.

However, SBC Michigan did not honor the contract and charged significant early termination penalties to its customers who had switched their services to ACD Telecom in reliance upon the Mutual Waiver Agreement. ACD Telecom is a CLEC, based in Lansing, Michigan. Initially, the Ingham County Circuit Court dismissed ACD Telecom’s breach of contract claim. However, the Michigan Court of Appeals reversed and remanded the case for trial. The Court of Appeals’ order can be viewed at:

http://coa.courts.mi.gov/documents/OPINIONS/FINAL/COA/20080318_C274767_36_274767.OPN.PDF

After a trial lasting almost three weeks, the Jury found that the refusal of SBC Michigan (which had since become AT&T Michigan) to honor the Mutual Waiver Agreement had caused ACD Telecom to suffer damages in the amount of $7,994,590 and entered a judgment ordering AT&T Michigan to pay ACD Telecom.

The case was prepared by Mssrs. Field, Witte, Gensch, and Stephens. Mr. Witte tried the case.

Verizon Cost Study, MPSC Case No. U-15210

admin — Thu, 04 Aug 2011 22:42:23 +0000

Field Law Group represented a coalition of CLECs as the only active industry participant in Verizon’s most recent Michigan cost study filed, MPSC Case No. U-15210. The advocacy of Field Law Group and its expert, Dr. Robert Loube of Rolka, Loube Saltzer Associates, contributed to an order by the Michigan Public Service Commission, approving significantly lower costs than Verizon had requested. Instead of Verizon’s filed cost of $34.44 per month for Verizon’s 2 Wire Analog and xDSL Loops, the MPSC ultimately approved a cost of $21.44 per month, Instead of Verizon’s filed cost of $6.35 per month per Air Line Mile for a DS-1 Transport Facility, the cost ultimately approved was less than 20% of the cost that Verizon had filed, or $1.17 per month per month per Air Line Mile. In addition, the Commission limited Verizon’s increase in non-recurring charges from its previous cost case to 10%, and required Verizon to reduce any newly filed non-recurring costs by 50%.

As a result to the lower costs approved by the MPSC in Case No. U-15210, the viability of competition in Verizon service territories was dramatically enhanced. The Commission’s Order is available at http://efile.mpsc.state.mi.us/efile/docs/15210/0146.pdf.

admin — Sat, 18 Jun 2011 16:39:33 +0000

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admin — Sun, 05 Jun 2011 15:16:31 +0000

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