Crown Castle Granted Access to Sealed Documents in Pasadena Appeal

The 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals granted Crown Castle’s motion for access to confidential documents in the Pasadena, Texas, appeal to reverse a district court’s granting of summary judgment in Crown Castle’s favor (see 2301050031), said an order signed Wednesday by U.S. Circuit Judge Edith Brown Clement. Crown Castle said it needs the documents to prepare the responding brief that’s due Jan. 23. The district court said Crown Castle was right to assert that Section 253 of the Telecommunications Act preempted Pasadena’s design manual, which the company said impossibly required the small-cell nodes to be buried underground or spaced in a limiting way. Pasadena’s opening brief in the appeal said Crown Castle lacks standing to assert a Section 253 claim because it’s not a telecommunications service provider in the meaning of the statute.