Phase II Discovery Begins in T-Mobile’s Cell Tower Fight With N.Y. Town

With Phase I discovery now complete in T-Mobile's cell tower dispute with the town of Oyster Bay, New York, the case's Phase II discovery schedule is in effect, while the parties continue holding settlement negotiations, said U.S. Magistrate Judge Anne Shields for Eastern New York in Central Islip in a text-only scheduling order Monday (docket 2:23-cv-05339). All Phase II fact discovery will be complete by July 3, and all discovery, including expert discovery, by Oct. 23, said the order. Any party seeking to make a dispositive motion shall initiate that process, consistent with the district judge's individual rules, by Nov. 25, it said. The judge instructed counsel to submit a joint letter by July 9 advising her as to the status of the case. T-Mobile alleges that Oyster Bay ran afoul of the Telecommunications Act by denying its application for a rear-yard variance to install a wireless telecom facility (see 2307140001). The town contends that T-Mobile’s claims violate the 10th Amendment “by commandeering local municipalities to issue zoning approvals and building permits,” despite local objections and compliance with state and local “substantive and procedural law” (see 2308090016).