Tracker Detail
US v. Google LLC / State of Colorado v. Google LLC
Name | Type | Government | Date Initiated | Status | Last Updated |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
US v. Google LLC / State of Colorado v. Google LLC | Litigation | United States | Oct 20, 2020 | Court rules that Google in violation of antitrust laws | Nov 20, 2024 |
Summary
The Department of Justice, joined by 50 state attorneys general, filed a lawsuit against Google, alleging it used anticompetitive tactics to maintain and extend its monopolies in search services and advertising in violation of the Sherman Antitrust Act. The suit claims that Google entered into exclusionary agreements worth billions of dollars with distributors like Apple, Android, and AT&T to become the preset default general search engine for mobile devices and computers, locking them out of deals with Google’s competitors and foreclosing competition for internet search.
Updates
December 17, 2020. The state of Colorado and 37 other states filed suit against Google under Section 16 of the Clayton Act.
January 7, 2021. The court consolidated the two cases for pretrial purposes, including discovery.
December 12, 2022. Google filed a motion for summary judgment, asking the judge to dismiss the case.
February 16, 2023. The Department of Justice filed opposition to Google's motion to dismiss and States files memorandum in opposition.
February 23, 2023. The discovery phase closed in the case. The Department of Justice files memorandum supporting sanctions against Google for failing to preserve evidence.
March 13, 2023. Google filed reply to Department of Justice in support of motion to dismiss and filed reply to states' opposition.
March 17, 2023. Google filed opposition to Department of Justice's motion for sanctions. Department of Justice filed reply on March 23, 2023. States filed reply on April 4, 2023.
April 27, 2023. Judge Amit Mehta finds there is insufficient evidence to sanction Google for failing to preserve evidence, but orders Google to comply with additional discovery requests.
August 4, 2023. Judge Amit Mehta granted Google's motion to dismiss in part and denies it in part.
September 12, 2023. Trial commences.
August 5, 2024. Judge Amit Mehta ruled that Google acted illegally to maintain a monopoly in online search.
October 8, 2024. Department of Justice filed a proposed remedy framework that will inform its final proposed judgment to the court that will propose appropriate remedies to "unfetter [relevant] markets from Google’s exclusionary conduct," "remove barriers to competition," "deny Google the fruits of its statutory violations," and "prevent Google from monopolizing [relevant] markets and related markets in the future."
November 20, 2024. The Department of Justice filed its proposed final judgment, including an executive summary of the document. The filing recommends the court impose a number of remedies, including prohibiting Google from entering into exclusionary agreements, requiring the company to divest Chrome and block it from entering the browser market for five years, limiting investments and acquisitions in search and search ad rivals, banning self-preferencing of its search product, and requiring it to make its search index available to rivals and syndicate its search results for ten years.
Additional Resources
U.S. and Plaintiff States v. Google LLC [2020] - US Department of Justice Antitrust Division
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA v. GOOGLE LLC (1:20-cv-03010) - CourtListener
STATE OF COLORADO v. GOOGLE LLC (1:20-cv-03715) - CourtListener
