Political and Legislative Services

Thompson Coburn attorneys have worked with members of the U.S. Congress, House of Representatives and their staff on our clients’ behalf. These efforts have included work with the Senate Committees on Commerce, Science and Transportation; Finance; and Energy and Natural Resources. They also have worked with the House Committees on Homeland Security, Ways and Means, Transportation and Infrastructure, and the Postal Service Subcommittee of the House Committee on Government Reform.

We have considerable experience with the legislative process on Capitol Hill, including preparing position papers and briefing documents, drafting legislative proposals and amendments, and preparing testimony for hearings.

Partners: Blair, Bonnie S.; Bock, Cherie Stephens; Brown, Eileen P.; Burke, Halpin J.; Craven, J. Jeffrey; Dean Jr., Warren L.; Fanchi, Peter A.; Fink, Jeffrey R.; Gill Jr., Edward J.; Goldfarb, Evan Raskas; Goldstein, A. Jay; Goturi, Milada R.; Hennessy, Joyce Harris; Higgins, Stephen B.; Kaiser, Matthew; Kingston, John S.; Kinsock, Thomas B.; Knickmeyer, Kenton E.; Krumholz, Marjorie F.; LaRose, Robert M.; Mayes, Gary; McGowan, Thomas Sean; McNaul, Margaret E.; Miller, Jan Paul; Newell, Gary J.; Noelker, Timothy F.; Omer, Gregory D.; Polino, Teresa M.; Schlafly, Thomas F.; Sherman, Steven M.; Sjögren, Dee Anne; Starke, Jane Sutter; Strassner, Peter S.; Woodman, G. Kent

Senior Counsel: Arnold, Fred E.

Counsel: Lucas, Robert A.

Associates: Gammell, Orisia K.; Kemper, Ryan Russell; Manger, Allison N.; Oliver, Tonya M.; Patterson, Gregory A.; Zschoche, Maria G.

State Sovereignty: Federal Maritime Commission v. South Carolina State Ports Authority, 535 U.S. 743 (2002)
In 2002, Thompson Coburn successfully represented the SCSPA before the United States Supreme Court. States and their instrumentalities are entitled to sovereign immunity in proceedings before federal administrative tribunals. A vessel operator filed a complaint at the Federal Maritime Commission against the SCSPA. The Administrative Law Judge dismissed the complaint on the basis of the state’s sovereign immunity reflected in the 11th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. The Commission itself reversed. We petitioned for review by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit and secured a unanimous decision reversing the Commission. The Federal Maritime Commission, joined by the Solicitor General, filed a Petition for Certiorari, which was granted. We successfully argued that the principle of state sovereign immunity reflected in the 11th Amendment transcended its literal language to apply to proceedings before federal agencies and was not limited to cases filed in Article III courts. The decision, one of the most significant in perhaps the oldest line of Supreme Court cases, affirms the dual sovereignty inherent in our federal system of government.

Hours of Services: One of our clients, while not a utility itself, provides substantial maintenance and repair services to utility companies worldwide, with a particular emphasis on providing services to U.S. municipal entities. Given the nature and time sensitivity of the products used by the client, the utility-related work frequently requires the client’s drivers to operate commercial motor vehicles beyond the strict confines of the applicable hours of service regulations. Through extensive efforts, including meetings with the appropriate regulatory officers within the DOT, we obtained an exemption from the hours of service regulations for most of the client’s day-to-day activities.

Port Authority: In December 2006, our firm requested and obtained a Modified Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity (MRC) from the Surface Transportation Board (STB) for a state port authority to operate on a line known as the Port Royal Railroad. Surrounding landowners petitioned for reconsideration of the MRC, arguing that they owned the fee interest in the right-of-way and that the STB lacked jurisdiction to issue the MRC because the line had been abandoned. We represented the port authority in its opposition to the landowners. The STB denied the landowners’ petition; the landowners again petitioned for reconsideration of the decision. In July 2008, we filed a notice of intent to terminate service on the line and a joint request for a notice of interim trail use (NITU) that would permit rail banking/interim trail use of the line under the National Trails System Act, 16 U.S.C. 1247(d). The landowners opposed the notice. In May 2009, the STB denied the landowners’ petition for reconsideration and granted the joint request for a NITU.

Air Transport Association of America, Inc.: For more than a decade, we have represented U.S. scheduled passenger, combination and all cargo service airlines via the industry’s principal trade and service organization, the Air Transport Association of America, Inc. (ATA). During this time, the firm has counseled the ATA on issues involving the development and implementation of the liability rules for air passengers under the Warsaw Convention and its successor, the Montreal Convention, in proceedings before the DOT Office of the Secretary (OST). We represented the U.S. airline industry in obtaining Senate advice and counsel regarding the ratification of the Montreal Convention. In 1996, our attorneys drafted, filed with the DOT, and, upon DOT approval, assisted in implementing the 1996 Implementing Provisions Agreement (1996 IPA) concerning the limits and conditions of international passenger liability established by the Warsaw Convention. From 2005 through the present, our attorneys have represented the ATA and its members before the DOT in a proceeding seeking regulatory approval of updated and amended liability rules for air passengers (the 2006 IPA), which will modernize air carrier international liability rules and harmonize the rules of the Warsaw Convention and the Montreal Convention.

In addition, we have represented the ATA on a variety of environmental and regulatory matters before the DOT and Congress.

Chemical Client: The firm advised a chemical company concerning an investigation by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), Security and Hazardous Material Division, arising from multiple shipments of hazardous materials in apparent noncompliance with the applicable regulations of the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration. We participated extensively in structuring and preparing an initial submission as well as supplemental submissions to the FAA. Despite the potential for hundreds of thousands of dollars in penalties, the FAA agreed to resolve the matter with a Letter of Warning and to forego any civil penalties.

SonAir Serviço Aéreo, S.A. (SonAir): SonAir signed a long-term contract for a private air charter that has become known as the Houston Express. The private charter is performed for the U.S.-Africa Energy Association (USAEA), an association of companies engaged in the exploration and development of petroleum resources off of the West Coast of Africa, and provides three direct round trip flights per week between Houston and Luanda, Angola. Given the increased demands of USAEA members, two 747s were acquired and will be specially configured and dedicated to this service.

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Political and Legislative