Microsoft Fights Back Against Government's Antitrust Lawsuit Strategy

Strategic Insights -

Microsoft Corp. is fighting the federal government's effort to expedite its landmark antitrust case to the Supreme Court, requesting that Judge Thomas Penfield Jackson rule on the company's motion to forestall the break-up plan he ordered last week. The company's attorneys argue that the government's use of a 1974 law called the Expediting Act does not apply to the case brought by 17 states, which were never formally merged into the government's case. Microsoft's recent filing highlights the company's efforts to challenge the government's antitrust lawsuit strategy.

Key Takeaways:

  • Microsoft has filed an appeal to Judge Thomas Penfield Jackson's ruling that the company be broken up into two separate entities.
  • The US Court of Appeals agreed to hear the case, which is the same court that overturned a previous ruling against Microsoft.
  • The government and 17 states are attempting to take advantage of the rarely-used 1974 Expediting Act, which allows federal antitrust cases to skip the lower appeals court process and head straight to the Supreme Court.
  • Microsoft argues that the government's use of the Expediting Act does not apply to the case brought by the states, which were never formally merged into the government's case.
  • The company claims that the DOJ is wrong regarding the separate nature of the two cases, which were not merged when they were consolidated for trial.
  • Microsoft's filing highlights the company's efforts to challenge the government's antitrust lawsuit strategy and emphasizes the uncertainty surrounding the case.

Statistics:

  • 17 states have formulated the break-up plan.
  • 1974 is the year the Expediting Act was introduced.
  • June 7, 2000, is the date when Judge Jackson adopted the government's breakup plan nearly verbatim.

Sources:

  • Wires Online
  • Legal Business/MSSplit