What to Expect When You're Expecting a Net Neutrality Decision

Every Tuesday and Friday morning at 10 am (Eastern), scores of journalists, activists, and lawyers stare at the website of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit’s “Opinions” page, rapidly refreshing their browsers. They are waiting for the court’s opinion in the challenge to the Federal Communications Commission’s 2017 decision repealing its own Obama-era network neutrality rules. Within a few minutes, the court posts new decisions or notes that there will be no decisions that day. The court’s net neutrality decision may come down tomorrow, next week, next month, or several months from now; with the benefit of lifetime tenure, the judges take as long as they feel necessary to write their opinions. Perhaps the most immediate impact of the forthcoming decision will be on the legislative process, as the winning side will have greatly increased leverage in Congress over the next few years. 

[Andrew Jay Schwartzman is the Benton Senior Counselor]