Careers

Experiences

Industries

Offices

Our Firm

Pages

Our People

Updates

Practices

Warner Norcross + Judd LLP is a corporate law firm with over 230 attorneys serving clients in nine offices throughout Michigan. Among the largest law firms in Michigan, Warner works in virtually all areas of business law.

Michigan Law Firm - Warner Norcross + Judd LLP

Effective in August of 2016, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) issued regulations placing very stringent restrictions on how companies may utilize drones—or “small unmanned aircrafts”—for commercial purposes. Those regulations prohibit (among other things):

contentpilot/introduction

core/list

These restrictions even apply to drones flown over one’s own private property. That means drones used to film sporting, student or recreational events may not be flown over people—even when those people are on your property and are aware of the drone. &nbsp;

core/paragraph

Operators failing to comply with these restrictions are subject to fines for each violation. The FAA has issued fines ranging from a few hundred dollars to the FAA’s largest fine to date: a proposed fine of $1.9 million issued against a New York-based aerial photography company.  Read: <a href="http://www.recode.net/2017/1/17/14298180/faa-largest-fine-flying-drones-illegally-skypan" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"><em>The FAA just issued the largest fine ever against a company for flying drones illegally</em></a>.

Commercial drone operators can, however, apply to the FAA for waivers from all of these restrictions. We are currently monitoring how freely the FAA will grant these waivers and which type(s) of drones are most likely to get them. If you have any questions about navigating the FAA’s waiver process or how the new regulations affect your drone and anticipated drone use, please feel free to contact Clint Westbrook at 616.752.2748 or <a href="mailto:cwestbrook@wnj.com">cwestbrook@wnj.com</a> or Lance Zoerhof at 616.752.2384 or <a href="mailto:lzoerhof@wnj.com">lzoerhof@wnj.com</a> for assistance.

Senior Counsel

Lance R. Zoerhof

Cybersecurity and Privacy

Regulatory and Compliance

Flyer Beware: Strict New Drone Regulations Now in Effect

Warner Norcross + Judd LLP is responsible for the contents of our advertising and this website. Please read our full <a href="/privacy-policy/" aria-label="see privacy policy">privacy policy</a> available on our website. If you have any questions or comments about our website or our Privacy Policy please contact us at <a href="mailto:info@wnj.com">info@wnj.com</a> or 616.752.2000. 

Flyer Beware: Strict New Drone Regulations Now in Effect

professionals