Court Sets Briefing Schedule for Neustar Case Against FCC LNPA Decision

A federal court set the briefing schedule for Neustar's challenge to an FCC order that gave Telcordia the conditional rights to the next local number portability administrator (LNPA) contract (Neustar v. FCC, No. 15-1080). Under an order issued Wednesday by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit, Neustar's brief is due Sept. 14; the FCC's is due Oct. 14; the brief of intervenors CTIA and USTelecom in support of the FCC is due Oct. 29; Neustar's reply is due Nov. 12 and final briefs incorporating a deferred appendix are due Dec. 3. The court issued a notice saying oral argument typically will be scheduled at least 45 days after briefing is completed. Neustar had no comment; it had filed a motion May 7 asking the court for an expedited briefing schedule that resembled the one the court issued Wednesday, albeit almost three months later. In the meantime, the FCC filed a motion May 21 asking the court to dismiss Neustar's challenge as premature, or alternatively hold it in abeyance pending further regulatory actions, because the agency considered its order an interim step in the LNPA selection process. A court motions panel July 21 issued an order that rejected the FCC request to hold the case in abeyance and referred its dismissal motion to the panel that will consider the case on its merits (see 1507210039).