Judge rather than jury will render verdict in upcoming antitrust trial

By MATTHEW BARAKAT
AP Business Writer

ALEXANDRIA, Va. (AP) — A judge rather than a jury will decide whether Google violated federal antitrust laws by building a monopoly on the technology that powers online advertising. The decision Friday by U.S. District Judge Leonie Brinkema was a defeat for the Justice Department, which sought a jury trial when it filed the case last year in federal court in Alexandria, Virginia. Google said the case is highly technical and better decided by a judge. Google also argued that the constitutional right to a jury trial does not apply to a civil suit brought by the government. The government disagreed. The case in Virginia is separate from an ongoing case in Washington alleging Google’s search engine is an illegal monopoly.