Team Telecom

Co-Chairs’ Opening Remarks

Andrew Lipman
Partner
Morgan, Lewis & Bockius LLP

Kent Bressie
Partner
Harris Wiltshire & Grannis LLP

Team Telecom 2.0: Examining the New Team Telecom Environment in the Aftermath of Executive Order 13913 and A Deep Dive into the FCC’s Recent Implementation Guidelines

Andrew Guhr
Associate General Counsel, Telecommunications
Facebook

Caroline E. Brown
Partner
Crowell & Moring LLP
Former Attorney-Advisor, National Security Division, U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ)

Andrew Lipman
Partner
Morgan, Lewis & Bockius LLP

• Gaining an understanding of the new Team Telecom structure, timelines, scope of authority/jurisdiction and review process
• What foreign ownership and control thresholds must be met for a telecom license application to be subject to review by the new Team Telecom committee?
• Addressing ambiguities in EO 13913 that leave room for further clarification
• Analyzing Team Telecom’s:
• Emerging efforts to mitigate sensitive personal data related to broadcast licenses
• Approach to submarine cables connecting US-China and/or involving Chinese ownership
• Developing requirement that license-holders negotiate security terms with vendors
• Examining the FCC’s implementation guidelines for how the new process will work

Spotlight Interview

Loyaan Egal
Team Telecom Chair
U.S. Department of Justice

Interviewed by:

Rick Sofield
Partner
Wiley Rein LLP

Break

Effectively Navigating the New Team Telecom Process: Strategies for Jumpstarting the Process, Meeting New Timelines, Eliminating Uncertainty and Avoiding Pitfalls

James Barker
Partner, Global Co-Chair of the Connectivity Industry Group
Latham & Watkins

Joshua Gruenspecht
Partner
Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati

With the official formalization of the new Team Telecom Committee and review processes, and the expanded jurisdiction of the committee, it is clear that there is a new national security regulator in town. As telecom license applications, M+A activity and other telecom deals with foreign entities will now be given more attention, scrutiny and oversight by the government, practitioners in this space will have an increased need to understand the new processes involved and how to efficiently and effectively navigate them. This panel will provide critical strategies for managing reviews in the new Team Telecom environment, eliminating uncertainty and overcoming key challenges.

Managing the Interplay Between CFIUS, FOCI and Team Telecom Reviews

Jill Sandford
Chief Legal Officer
FirstLight Fiber

Michele C. Farquhar
Managing Partner
Hogan Lovells US LLP

• Strategies for managing the interplay between the new Team Telecom review process and other national security reviews, such as the CFIUS process and Defense Counterintelligence and Security Agency (DCSA) clearance
• Assessing how the new FIRRMA regulations, new Team Telecom rules and FOCI mitigation will coexist going forward – how can the three regimes work together?
• Tools for navigating the three processes concurrently
• Best practices for coordinating with the U.S. government, transaction parties and outside counsel when more than one national security review is at play

Lunch Break

Insights from Foreign Investors on the New Team Telecom Process

Laurie Miller
President & CEO
Southern Cross Cable Network (New Zealand)

Sandra Delany
General Counsel
Aqua Comms (Ireland)

Nirav Shah
Managing Director
EQT Group (Sweden)

Moderator:

Kent Bressie
Partner
Harris Wiltshire & Grannis LLP

Tune in as this panel of foreign investors shares first-hand insights on how they view the new Team Telecom process, what benefits and challenges they perceive, and lessons learned from engagement with the new Team Telecom regime.

Afternoon Break

Keynote Address

Federal Communications Commission

Troy Tanner
Deputy Chief, International Bureau
Federal Communications Commission

Geoffrey Starks
Commissioner
Federal Communications Commission

Negotiating and Structuring Mitigation Agreements Amidst the New Team Telecom Landscape

David Fagan
Partner
Covington & Burling LLP

Stefanie McCabe
Lead, Team Telecom
Foreign Investment Risk Management (FIRM)
Office of Trade and Economic Security
U.S. Department of Homeland Security

• Examining the finer points of negotiating and drafting mitigation language
• What is acceptable and not acceptable to include in a Team Telecom mitigation agreement?
• Updating your mitigation approach to new and evolving Team Telecom requirements and trends
• How are mitigation agreements monitored within the new Team Telecom environment?

How Team Telecom Compliance and Enforcement Have Changed as a Result of EO 13913 and How You Should Prepare

Katie Bristow Myers
Senior Attorney
Worldwide Subsea and Terrestrial Networks
Microsoft

Alton O. Turner
Senior Policy Analyst
Office of Strategy, Policy, and Plans | Foreign Investment Risk Management
Department of Homeland Security

John Beahn
Partner
Shearman & Sterling LLP

• In what ways has Team Telecom been ramping up its scrutiny of parties’ compliance with the terms of mitigation agreements?
• What are we now seeing in terms of increased oversight and penalties for non-compliance?
• Under what circumstances can the new Committee review already existing FCC licenses to identify new risks to national security or law enforcement interests? Under what circumstances can they direct the FCC to modify existing licenses or revoke them completely?
• How are the Team Telecom member agencies working independently to enforce agreement terms?
• To what extent are third-party monitors now being used in the post-deal oversight process?
• How is the Team Telecom compliance and enforcement processes handled similarly to CFIUS, and in what ways are they handled differently?

Conference Concludes – Speaker “Meet & Greets” and Q+A