DOJ Presents Final Argument in Adtech Antitrust Suit vs. Google

The Department of Justice presented its final argument in its adtech antitrust lawsuit against Google, as the end nears for a trial that began in U.S. Eastern District Court of Virginia in Alexandria on Sept. 9.

DOJ lawyer Aaron Teitelbaum urged U.S. District Judge Leonie Brinkema to hold Google accountable for anticompetitive conduct, Reuters reported, telling the court, “Google rigged the rules of the road.”

Arielle Garcia, director of intelligence at digital advertising watchdog Check My Ads, said in a LinkedIn post that Brinkema told Google lawyer Karen Dunn that she was approaching “dangerous territory” in claiming that the DOJ selectively highlighted Google employee statements without full context, noting that Google neglected to preserve evidence that would provide that context.

Garcia added that the DOJ said in its closing argument that Google only called one witness during the trial who was not a Google employee or a recipient of grant money from the...