GCR LLP Wins Ruling in Colorado Telecommunications Case

GOLDEN, Colo.--(EON: Enhanced Online News)--GCR LLP won a landmark ruling in the Jefferson County District Court for client NewPath Networks LLC, a distributed antenna system provider (DAS), that entitles the company to receive protection as a telecommunications provider under Colorado’s telecommunications laws.

“By classifying DAS providers as telecommunications providers, the court upheld the state and federal government’s policy that everyone should have access to wireless coverage.”

On April 8, Judge Philip J. McNulty signed a written order and judgment confirming NewPath as a telecommunications provider and that state and local governments may not require telecommunications companies to pay rent for use of public rights-of-way.

Using DAS technology, NewPath provides fiber-based support of wireless voice and data communications to its customers – wireless carriers that in turn provide cellular service to the public. NewPath transmits its signals over fiber-optic cable into areas that the major carriers cannot serve because of zoning restrictions or hard-to-reach topography.

Prior to the ruling, DAS providers like NewPath were not specifically covered by the Colorado law that prevents state and local governments from charging rent and unreasonable fees to telecommunications providers as a condition of their use of public rights-of-way. Rents and fees made expansion of cellular telephone service into mountainous rural areas and some Denver metropolitan neighborhoods economically unfeasible.

“This ruling is a win for the public because it permits DAS providers to build cost-effective systems that transmit wireless signals to people who live in remote areas that otherwise would not have access to wireless coverage,” said lead attorney Susan Barnes. “By classifying DAS providers as telecommunications providers, the court upheld the state and federal government’s policy that everyone should have access to wireless coverage.”

The NewPath ruling is the first of its kind in Colorado. Builders and providers of wireless services based on distributed antenna system technology in Colorado and other states now have a compelling argument that they should no longer be subjected to the economic burden of rents and unreasonable fees imposed by the state and local governments as conditions for access to public rights-of-way.

GCR LLP provides the full range of corporate and public legal services, from general counsel to litigation. The firm specializes in corporate, education and government legal services, among many other areas of law. GCR has offices in the San Francisco Bay area, Los Angeles, San Diego, San Jose and Denver. For additional information, visit www.gcrlegal.com.