Google requests non-jury trial in response to US antitrust lawsuit

Big tech company argues that a jury trial would be unprecedented and that the case’s technical nature might be difficult for jurors to understand.
Image of Google mobile and hammer.

Google has requested a non-jury trial in response to the US Justice Department’s lawsuit accusing the tech giant of anticompetitive practices in the online advertising market. The Justice Department, which filed the lawsuit in January 2023, claims Google has abused its dominance in digital advertising and should be forced to divest its ad manager suite.

Tech giant argues that the Justice Department’s request for a jury trial deviates from historical precedent, emphasising the complex technical nature of the case, which it believes would be challenging for a jury to understand. The Justice Department has not yet commented on Google’s filing.

Google’s online advertising network, including the ad manager, accounted for 12% of its revenue in 2021 and is integral to its overall sales, including its search engine and cloud services. Google contends that the Justice Department’s case exceeds the boundaries of antitrust law, asserting that these laws do not regulate the alleged conduct.