AT&T complained that a panel of independent academics in the PUC's merger impact hearing threatened to "taint" the proceeding with their uninformed opinions. 

The panel opened the first of 3 public workshops throughout the state in the month of July where panelists will discuss various aspects of the proposed merger of AT&T with T-Mobile. 

The workshop on Friday July 8th began with the panel on economic impact, which featured Santa Clara University School of Law professor Allen Hammond, Stanford professors Mark Lemley of Stanford Law School, Roger Noll, a professor emeritus of economics at Stanford University, and George Ford of Washington's Phoenix Center for Economic Policy.

The day followed with 4 industry panels discussing back-haul service agreements, data roaming services and spectrum availability. All 3industry panels featured one representative each from AT&T, T-Mobile, Sprint and Cricket.

Michelle Quinn reported in Politico on the letter sent by AT&T to presiding judge Jessica Hecht and PUC commissioner Catherine Sandoval, and the letter is available here.

For a transcript and video archive of the July 8th workshops, including the panel AT&T tried to kill, go here.  MA's brief comment can be found on pages 221-223 of the transcript.