Prominent attorney David Boies has joined the legal team representing video platform Rumble in its multibillion-dollar antitrust case against Google, further escalating a legal battle that alleges the tech giant unfairly stifled YouTube’s competitors in the online video space.
Reclaim The Net reports that in a major development in the ongoing legal battle between video platform Rumble and tech giant Google, renowned attorney David Boies has joined Rumble’s legal team. The multibillion-dollar antitrust case, filed by Rumble in 2021 in the US District Court for the Northern District of California, accuses Google of abusing its dominance to crush YouTube’s competition in the online video distribution market.
Rumble’s complaint alleges that Google rigged its search algorithms to prioritize YouTube results while simultaneously working with mobile device manufacturers to block Rumble’s preinstallation on Android phones. The platform argues that these actions were part of a broader strategy by Google to cement YouTube’s dominance in the online video space. As a result, Rumble is seeking over $2 billion in damages.
The addition of David Boies to Rumble’s legal team brings decades of experience in high-profile antitrust litigation. Boies first gained national prominence in the 1990s when he led the US government’s antitrust case against Microsoft, one of the most consequential antitrust prosecutions in modern corporate history. In that case, Boies argued that Microsoft had abused its dominance to crush competition, drawing parallels to Rumble’s current accusations against Google.
To pursue the case, Boies will collaborate with attorneys from Cadwalader, Wickersham & Taft, including Nicholas Gravante Jr. Gravante and Boies have a long-standing partnership, having worked together for more than 20 years at Boies Schiller Flexner, where Gravante held senior roles before joining Cadwalader in 2020. Their professional relationship dates back even further to their early careers at the Wall Street law firm Cravath, Swaine & Moore.
Google, represented by Williams & Connolly partner John Schmidtlein, an experienced litigator in major antitrust and regulatory matters, has denied the allegations. The company has asked U.S. District Judge Haywood Gilliam Jr. to resolve the matter before it reaches trial, which is currently scheduled for July.
The involvement of David Boies deepens the significance of the case, given his extensive experience in major legal fights involving corporate power and civil rights. Beyond his victory in the Microsoft matter, Boies has frequently been tapped for high-profile cases, including challenging Google in a separate action alleging consumer privacy violations.
The trial is currently scheduled to take place in July.
Google is currently in the remedy phase of an antitrust trial related to its stranglehold over the search market. Later this year, the internet giant will face the remedy phase of its second antitrust trial, this time focused on its dominance of ad tech.
Read more at Reclaim The Net here.
Lucas Nolan is a reporter for Breitbart News covering issues of free speech and online censorship.
