Judge throws out antitrust group's case

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By Cara Garretson

(IDG) -- A federal judge overseeing the antitrust case between Microsoft Corp. and the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) dismissed a lawsuit brought by a nonprofit antitrust group that claimed the parties didn't fully disclose communication related to the proposed settlement of the case.

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Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly dismissed The American Antitrust Institute Inc. (AAI) complaint Wednesday, which was filed late last month, calling it self-serving and not in the public's interest.

The AAI claimed that Microsoft and the DOJ didn't stick to guidelines dictated by the Tunney Act for settling a civil antitrust suit. The AAI claimed that Microsoft didn't report to the court all interaction it had with employees of the U.S. during the settlement process -- a requirement specified by the Tunney Act that would keep the company from lobbying government officials behind closed doors to support the agreement.

Both Microsoft and the DOJ asked the judge to dismiss the AAI's complaint, asserting that the Tunney Act doesn't allow for private cause of action during the settlement process. Kollar-Kotelly supported that assertion, and added in her memorandum opinion that the AAI would fail to suffer irreparable injury if the settlement proceeds, as the group had claimed in its filing. The judge also said that Microsoft and the DOJ would suffer harm if the settlement procedure was halted and that such halting wasn't in the public's interest.

Separately, another group has joined the list of organizations wanting a say in court about the proposed settlement. Industry trade group The Project to Promote Competition & Innovation in the Digital Age, or ProComp, has requested to intervene in the settlement process, joining SBC Telecommunications Inc., the Computer and Communications Industry Association and others that want to testify.

Kollar-Kotelly will hold a hearing March 6 with Microsoft and the DOJ to consider the proposed settlement, though she hasn't yet ruled whether third-party groups will be allowed to testify at that hearing.