A move by the U.S. Supreme Court on Monday means that Qwest, Level 3 Communications and some other telecommunication companies may now face a state-by-state legal battle over fiber-optic cables allegedly laid in private property without permission.
The two Denver-based companies, along with Sprint of Overland Park, Kan., and WilTel Communications of Tulsa, Okla., laid thousands of miles of fiber-optic cable during the 1990s after purchasing railroad rights of way.
The companies were hit with 42 lawsuits in 32 courts by landowners who claim the railroad rights of way did not allow for underground trenches used to bury the cable.
The companies hoped to proceed with an estimated $142.5 million settlement reached with many of the landowners in July 2003. But that settlement was overturned by the 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Chicago, which said the settlement did not certify for class-action status.
On Monday the Supreme Court declined to review the case. Both Qwest and Level 3 declined to comment on ongoing litigation.
Sprint spokesman Scott Stoffel said in an e-mail that the company was disappointed.
“Sprint and other carriers entered into the nationwide settlement under the belief that it presented the most efficient method to resolve protracted and expensive litigation on a basis that was fair to all parties,” Stoffel said.
All the companies have denied any legal liability.
The Chicago federal court said the lawyers who took part in the settlement talks didn’t adequately represent the interests of people in Tennessee and Kansas. Landowners in those states argue they are entitled to more than the settlement offers.
The Supreme Court’s move does nothing to change the appeals court rejection. That rejection “will force all parties back into state-by-state litigation, which is, of course, likely to produce a nightmare of complexity and inequitable treatment,” the companies argued in court papers filed in Washington.
Bloomberg News contributed to this story.
Staff writer Ross Wehner can be reached at 303-820-1503 or rwehner@denverpost.com.
