AT&T Staffs Up For Legal Battle Over Merger

AT&T has already dropped some significant cash in its effort to gain approval for its merger with T-Mobile, and documents filed recently at the Federal Communications Commission indicate it plans to spend even more.

According to a confidentiality agreement filed at the FCC, AT&T has hired at least 71 legal experts and consultants to help with the merger process. That number includes in-house counsel as well and lawyers and consultants from a range of outside firms. Among the firms that AT&T has hired are Arnold & Porter, Crowell & Moring, Sidley Austin, WilmerHale, the Brattle Group, and Compass Lexecon. On the lobbying side, AT&T has also been on a hiring spree, tapping lobbyists at firms such as Peck, Madigan, Jones, & Stewart, Roberti Associates, and Capitol City Group, among others.