Most Highly Regarded Firms: Regulatory Communications 2012

• November 2011

• Regulatory Communications

In this section we analyse the findings of our research in greater depth to identify the firms and practitioners who stand out worldwide.

Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer LLP achieves the highest number of listings in this edition with an impressive total of nine lawyers representing seven of its offices throughout Europe and Asia.

In its Brussels office, two lawyers are selected. Thomas Janssens has a “thorough understanding” of competition and antitrust issues relating to the TMT sector and has appeared before the European Court of Justice while Laurent Garzaniti is “highly regarded” for his competition and regulatory knowledge of telecoms, broadcasting and the internet. Two lawyers represent the German offices. Norbert Nolte based in Cologne is co-head of the TMT sector group and is “well known” for his regulatory expertise in telecoms and IT. Dividing his time between Düsseldorf and Frankfurt, Thomas Tschentscher focuses his practice on the regulated markets with extensive experience in telecoms and media. Representing the London office, Natasha Good is listed as “one of the best”, her regulatory work including advising new media players on regulation relating to broadband TV. In Hong Kong, Connie Carnabuci is head of both the intellectual property/information technology group and the TMT sector group in Asia and is “vastly knowledgeable” in regulatory matters.

Bird & Bird sees eight lawyers selected for inclusion with half of the names located in its London office. Colin Long, a “leading light” in the field, recently made the move to Bird & Bird from Olswang LLP and is an “outstanding addition” to the firm’s “highly revered” practice. Graeme Maguire is co-head of the international communications group and is “greatly respected” for his work on multi-jurisdictional regulatory projects. CEO and head of the international communications group David Kerr is a “most trusted adviser” and among the top regulatory lawyers in this field. In Frankfurt, Sven-Erik Heun is a “prominent figure” with expertise covering telecommunications, IT, e-commerce and internet law and has been a “key player” in the field since the first deregulation of the German communications market in 1989. Frédérique Dupuis-Toubol, based in the Paris office is a “true expert” and specialises in advising telecoms operators and TV cable operators on regulatory procedures and compliance.

EUROPE

London is home to 32 of the leading individuals that we recognise in this research, more than any other European city. Among those names, Christopher Watson at CMS Cameron McKenna LLP stands out as a “brilliant practitioner”. Watson heads the telecoms team and focuses on the areas where competition and regulation overlap in the TMT sector. Ann LaFrance of Squire Sanders & Dempsey LLP is “internationally renowned” and leads the firm’s European and Middle East communications practice. Her practice covers a broad range of EU regulatory issues including margin squeeze, net neutrality and spectrum licensing and refarming. Robert Bratby of Olswang LLP a “first-class” lawyer with a focus on telecoms regulatory policy and compliance and Emanuela Lecchi at Watson Farley & Williams LLP head the firm’s competition, regulatory and networks group and is “incredible” in the field according to our research. Daniel Preiskel at Preiskel & Co LLP is praised for his “sound advice”.

Alexandre Verheyden at Jones Day in Brussels is a “leading name” and he regularly appears before European and national courts. He recently represented DoubleClick in its merger with Google.

Marco Dalla Vedova of Dalla Vedova Studio Legale Associato is one of the most highly regarded lawyers in Rome and continues to impress clients and peers with his “vast knowledge” of regulatory matters pertaining to the TMT sector. Also based in Rome, Fabrizio Cugia di Sant’Orsola, a founding partner of Cugia Cuomo & Associati has “extensive experience” in advising national and international clients on regulatory aspects of the telecoms and media sectors.

Peter Eijsvoogel at Allen & Overy LLP in Amsterdam is an “international leader” in the field of price regulation in the telecommunications sector and was involved in the auctions of mobile phone frequencies in the Netherlands and Germany. He is co-chair of the communications committee of the International Bar Association. Based in Zurich, Michele Bernasconi at Bär & Karrer AG focuses on regulatory work in the telecoms sector and is a experienced international litigator and arbitrator.

THE AMERICAS

In the United States we identify 38 market leading lawyers with 31 of those based in Washington DC, making it the most populous state for leading regulatory communications lawyers.

Henry Goldberg of Goldberg Godles Wiener & Wright is one of the most prominent of these lawyers and has a “long-standing reputation” in the field. Andrew Lipman at Bingham McCutchen LLP has been fundamental to the success of the firm’s TMT group, having spent the past 30 years developing the practice to one of “international excellence” as it recognised to be today. In addition, Lipman has been involved in new regulatory policy at the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) and has played an intrinsic role in helping to shape key provisions of the Telecommunications Act of 1996.

At Wilkinson Barker Knauer LLP, two “outstanding” lawyers are featured. Cheryl Tritt is “greatly respected” for her advisory work on the regulatory aspects of transactions such as mergers and new business ventures with a focus on clients in the wireless, satellite, broadband, internet and “Voice over Internet Protocol” (VoIP) technologies. Managing partner Bryan Tramont advises clients of all size in the telecoms and media sectors on regulatory matters.

Two lawyers also feature from Wiley Rein LLP. David Gross is a “leading expert” on international telecommunications and has led numerous US delegations to international telecommunication conferences and his counsel is “highly sought after”. Head of the firm’s communication group Richard Wiley is a former chairman of the FCC and his impressive client list includes AT&T, Newspaper Association of America and Verizon.

In Toronto, Lorne Salzman at McCarthy Tétrault LLP is “vastly knowledgeable” in telecoms regulation and his experience includes resale and sharing of carrier services, unbundling of carrier service rates and spectrum licensing.

Our research uncovers 42 lawyers based in Latin America with Brazil being the most represented jurisdiction in this region.

Camila Borba Lefèvre at Machado Meyer Sendacz e Opice Advogados is one of the most prominent lawyers in the country with an “exceptional reputation” for assisting telecoms companies with regulatory procedures. Esther Nunes at Pinheiro Neto Advogados is “well known” for her regulatory expertise in telecoms and IT and advises US and Canadian companies in respect to their business ventures in Brazil. Fabio Kujawski at Barretto Ferreira, Kujawski e Brancher Sociedade de Advogados (BKBG) is a “distinguished practitioner” in the field.

Based in Argentina, Ramon Moyano at Estudio Beccar Varela focuses in particular on foreign companies doing business in Argentina and is “one of the country’s leading regulatory specialists” in the media and entertainment sectors.

ASIA-PACIFIC

In New Zealand, Malcolm Webb of Webb Henderson is a “skilled practitioner” with over 20 years’ experience advising telecoms clients on regulatory issues. He has also advised regulators and governments on a variety of matters including next-generation broadband, sub-sea cable arrangements and net neutrality. Also in New Zealand, David Boswell at Bell Gully is “highly recommended” by peers.

The most prominent name in Australia is Peter Waters at
Gilbert + Tobin. Waters has been involved in large-scale telecoms and IT joint ventures advising on the intersection between regulatory, commercial and competition issues. Joining him at the firm is Peter Leonard, a “great talent” in the field and his regulatory experience of communications, internet services and content is “first rate”. Angus Henderson of Webb Henderson is based in Sydney and has over 15 years’ experience advising clients in the communications sector on regulatory issues related to their commercial endeavours. Furthermore he advises operators and regulators throughout the Middle East and Asia-Pacific region on developing competitive regulatory models in their telecoms and broadcasting industries.

Jeanette Chan at Paul Weiss Rifkind Wharton & Garrison LLP, heads the China practice group and the Asia communications and technology practice group and splits her time between Beijing and Hong Kong. Her practice concentrates on foreign direct investment and she has been active in the Chinese TMT sector since the country first opened its doors to foreign companies in 1994.

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