Attorney General Clark Joins U.S. Department of Justice and 38 States in Holding Google Accountable for Violating Antitrust Laws

The Lawsuit Seeks Limits to Google Business Practices to End Search Engine Monopoly

Attorney General Charity Clark, along with the Justice Department and a bipartisan coalition of 37 other state attorneys general, today proposed a robust package of remedies to end Google's unlawful monopoly over internet search engines and to restore competition to benefit consumers.

In December of 2020, the Vermont Attorney General's Office joined the coalition in filing a lawsuit alleging that Google illegally maintains its monopoly power over general search engines through anticompetitive contracts and conduct.

In a landmark decision in August 2024, a D.C. federal district court judge ruled that Google violated federal antitrust laws by illegally maintaining a monopoly in online search and search text ads. At issue now are the remedies the court will impose to end Google's improper conduct that has stifled competition and harmed consumers, and the steps necessary to restore competition for the benefit of consumers.

"Consumers deserve a fair and free marketplace, period," said Attorney General Clark. "I thank our federal and state colleagues for their work on this important case."

The proposed final judgment filed with the court seeks to end Google's illegal monopoly and restore competition in several ways. It would end Google's search distribution contracts and revenue sharing agreements by prohibiting Google from paying to be the initial default search engine on any phone, device, or browser. Google would also be required to share its data and information-unlawfully obtained through its monopoly power-with rivals to improve the competitive choices available to consumers. This data would be shared in a manner that safeguards personal privacy and security.

Additionally, the states and the Justice Department seek the divestiture of Chrome, the Google browser through which a significant percentage of all Google searches are made. Coupled with that request will be provisions for additional divestitures, including the Android operating system, if Google fails to comply with specific remedies or if the remedies prove ineffective.

If successful, Google would be prohibited from foreclosing competition or self-preferencing through its ownership or control of other products-including Android. Google could not make Google Search or Google AI mandatory on Android devices, interfere with rival distribution, degrade rival quality, or leverage distributors to preference Google. Google must also give publishers the ability to opt out of having their data collected by Google for training Google's AI models or used in Generative AI answers.

The states alone also propose a public education campaign funded by Google to inform consumers what Google did, why it is illegal, and what choices they have in search engines. The campaign may include reasonable, short-term payments from Google to users who try non-Google search engines.

The proposed final order establishes a five-member technical committee to implement, monitor, and enforce the remedies for ten years.

A hearing on the proposed remedies is currently scheduled to begin on April 22, 2025, and conclude by May 2. A copy of the proposed final judgement is available here.

CONTACT: Amelia Vath, Outreach and Communications Coordinator, 802-828-3171

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