Law360 Canada ( April 25, 2025, 2:24 PM EDT) -- Appeal by appellant carriers (collectively the “carriers”) from a judgment of the Federal Court of Appeal, which affirmed a decision of the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission’s (CRTC). With the advent of fifth generation (5G) wireless networks, the CRTC undertook to review the associated regulatory framework. After inviting comments on the matter, the question of whether the CRTC’s jurisdiction to regulate carriers’ access to public property extended to the installation of 5G small cell antennas was raised. This required the CRTC to interpret the meaning of “transmission line” in ss. 43 and 44 of the Telecommunication Act (Act). The CRTC issued the Telecom Regulatory Policy CRTC 2021-130 (Decision). In its Decision, the CRTC considered that, in using the term “transmission line,” Parliament meant to capture “transmission cables” and “transmission wires.” The CRTC concluded that the term “transmission line” in ss. 43 and 44 of the Act did not include wireless telecommunications infrastructure, and therefore the CRTC did not have jurisdiction to adjudicate disputes involving access by carriers to highways and other public places to install, maintain or operate mobile wireless transmission facilities. The Federal Court of Appeal confirmed the CRTC’s interpretation. The carriers now asked the Court to depart from the interpretation adopted by the CRTC and the Federal Court of Appeal. They asked that the Court instead declare that “transmission line” could include the “small cell” antennas used in new fifth generation (5G) mobile wireless networks. The respondents argued that neither the CRTC nor the Federal Court of Appeal erred in their interpretation of “transmission line.”...