Opinion ID: 168880
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: The Limited Scope of Permissible Judicial Review

Text: 55 Pursuant to § 252(e)(6), federal courts are empowered to review determinations by state commissions concerning interconnection agreements to ensure that the agreement or statement meets the requirements of section 251 of this title and this section. 47 U.S.C. § 252(e)(6). Qwest argues that [i]f Congress had intended to give state commissions the authority to review and approve agreements that do not contain the duties listed in Section 251, it would not have limited judicial review in this manner. Qwest Utah Br. at 42. The Supreme Court has made clear, however, that district courts have broad federal question jurisdiction to review determinations made by state commissions, including decisions made wholly independent of § 251. Verizon Md., 535 U.S. at 642, 122 S.Ct. 1753. Furthermore, the FCC has ruled that state commissions have approval authority over any agreement that contains ongoing obligations relating to § 251 duties. Thus, even if Qwest is correct that Congress intended the scope of judicial review to be coextensive with the scope of the state commissions' authority over interconnection agreements, it is clear that the federal courts are empowered to review a decision under § 252 that an agreement contains ongoing obligations related to § 251 duties.