Fifth Circuit Won’t Rehear AT&T Fine Case
Courts are split on whether the FCC's forfeiture process violates the U.S. Constitution.
WASHINGTON, August 25, 2025 – It looks like the Federal Communications Commission is going to need help from the U.S. Supreme Court. Lower courts remain split over whether the agency’s process for issuing fines violated the constitution.
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit said Friday it will not rehear arguments in AT&T’s challenge to a $57 million FCC fine, leaving the company’s victory intact and maintaining a circuit split that makes Supreme Court intervention likely.
The court ruled in April that the FCC couldn’t fine the carrier because its forfeiture process was invalid in light of recent Supreme Court precedent. The high court ruled in Securities and Exchange Commission v. Jarkesy (2024) that the Securities and Exchange Commission, which oversees Wall Street financial firms, couldn't levy civil penalties without providing the chance for a jury trial.
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