3 Quadrennial Review Petitions vs. FCC Are Consolidated in 8th Circuit

The legal battle over the FCC’s 2018 quadrennial review order appears headed to the 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. The Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation randomly selected that circuit from the three where petitions for review were filed, said a consolidation order Tuesday (see 2402250001). The 8th Circuit was the venue for an appeal filed by Zimmer Radio. The other possible circuits in the lottery were the 5th and 11th, where appeals were filed by Nexstar and Beasley Media, respectively. All previous QR challenges were decided by a panel in the 3rd Circuit, but after a 2018 U.S. Supreme Court decision, that panel no longer has jurisdiction in the matter. The 5th, 8th and 11th circuits are seen as having conservative leanings, while the 3rd Circuit is considered more favorable to parties seeking to uphold regulations. Parties in the case could still seek to have it moved to a different circuit, but attorneys familiar with appellate procedure told us that rarely occurs. With the circuit for the case decided, it's likely that more challenges to the order will be filed, including an anticipated one from NAB, attorneys told us. Only circuits where appeals were filed in the 10 days after the order appeared in the Federal Register are added to the Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation’s lottery.