TIA Brief Should Be Rejected, NAB Says

A TIA motion for leave to file an amicus brief in support of the FCC in the petition for review proceeding against its incentive auction order should be denied as untimely, NAB said Wednesday in an opposition motion filed at the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit. “For four months TIA stood by silently as the parties hammered out a consolidated briefing schedule that places tight constraints on the parties’ word limits, briefing format, and filing deadlines, NAB said. “Now, at the eleventh hour, TIA appears with a proposed amicus brief that would in effect give a lopsided, 4,000-word extension to the Federal Communications Commission ('FCC') and its intervenors.” TIA's brief was filed Dec. 23, the same day as other respondent briefs, but TIA had not previously filed for leave to intervene, according to online court records. Allowing TIA to join the case would “cause extreme prejudice to NAB and Sinclair," NAB said. The broadcasters “are in the midst of responding to three Respondent side briefs while adhering to the scheduling Order’s inflexible word limits and tight deadlines,” NAB said. The court should reject TIA's request, NAB said.