Business & Government

Q&A: Judge Rules Google Is a ‘Monopolist.’ This UVA Law Professor Explains

August 7, 2024 • By Jane Kelly, jak4g@virginia.edu Jane Kelly, jak4g@virginia.edu

A graphic illustration of a monitor showing a new Google browser window, except instead it reads "Monopoly" in the Google colors.

(Illustration by John DiJulio, University Communications)

U.S. District Court Judge Amit Mehta ruled this week that “Google is a monopolist, and it has acted as one to maintain its monopoly.”

Mehta, a 1997 University of Virginia School of Law graduate, oversaw the 10-week trial, launched after the U.S. Justice Department filed an antitrust lawsuit against the ubiquitous search engine nearly four years ago. It accused the tech giant of using illegal business tactics to command nearly 90% of web searches.

“For more than 15 years, one general search engine has stood above the rest: Google,” Mehta wrote in his opinion. “The brand is synonymous with search.”

UVA Today asked Edmund Kitch, the Mary and Daniel Loughran Professor of Law, about the 277-page ruling and its implications.

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Q. Can you describe the ruling?

A. It’s a very long and detailed opinion. It applies conventional antitrust analysis, including (federal) circuit opinions, in a pretty straightforward manner and concludes that Google is in violation of Section 2 of the Sherman Act. It does not discuss the remedy. I assume there’s going to be a further proceeding in which the judge will enter a final decree including a remedy, which may be the real sticking point. It could take years.

Q. Some media outlets have called this a landmark ruling. What do you think?

A portrait of Edmund Kitch, the Mary and Daniel Loughran Professor of Law.

Edmund Kitch, the Mary and Daniel Loughran Professor of Law, said this week’s decision is just an early step in a long process. (UVA School of Law photo)

A. One basic reaction is that the newspaper coverage suggests this is kind of a significant outcome. It seems to overlook the fact that this is really the opening stage of what will be a long series of appellate reviews. This is just one pebble in the pond of a very large process.

Q. Was Mehta’s opinion all bad news for Google?

A. It’s a very well-crafted document. The judge put a lot of work into it. And it has many aspects that are quite favorable to Google. He talks about the wonders of the search system and Google’s role in developing and making it available. It was a long trial. It’s a long opinion. There were dozens of witnesses. So far as I can tell, the opinion is quite a masterpiece.

Q. So what happens now? What do you see as the next steps in the legal system?

A. I think there’ll be further proceedings in the district court addressing the question of the appropriate remedy and that’ll be necessary in order to have a final judgment that is appealable to the D.C. circuit of the U.S. Court of Appeals.