AUSTIN - The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit today transferred an antitrust case against Google from New York back to Texas, where it was originally filed in 2020.
The suit accuses Google of building a digital advertising monopoly.
The Second Circuit found that Google did not demonstrate “exceptional circumstances” that would warrant keeping the case in New York.
The case, in which Attorney General Ken Paxton leads a coalition of seventeen states challenging Google’s abuse of its monopoly power in online advertising, will now move forward to trial in Texas.
Since its filing, more than a dozen states have joined the Texas-led lawsuit, which alleges antitrust violations and deceptive acts by Google in its lucrative online display advertising business.
According to the complaint, Google’s monopolization includes an anticompetitive agreement with Facebook, making misrepresentations to users and customers, and suppressing competition.
Court records show Google had filed a motion to dismiss, asserting that the state plaintiffs are responding to the company’s success by seeking to compel it to share with its competitors “the fruits of its investments and innovation.”
The suit is now back in the Eastern District of Texas, case No. 4:20-CV-957-SDJ.