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Google on Friday asked the Department of Justice to investigate whether the new top antitrust officer representing Google competitors should back down from investigations and lawsuits against the company.
In a letter to Justice Department leaders, an outside attorney for Google said that Jonathan Kanter’s past work for the company’s critics “is highly questioned about the reality and appearance of impartiality.” He noted his work with the News Media Alliance, which represents publishers including Google, Yelp, and The New York Times Company.
“Mr. Google spokesperson Peter Schottenfels said in a statement that Kanter’s past statements and his work representing opponents defending the ministry’s lawsuits raise serious concerns about his ability to be impartial.”
Mr. Kanter, who was he? Confirmed by the Senate Earlier this week, as deputy antitrust attorney general, he has been a longtime behind-the-scenes player in building arguments against tech giants.
Google’s lawyer said Mr. Kanter represented Yelp in connection with an antitrust lawsuit brought against Google, led by a group including the Justice Department. Google also claimed that Mr. Kanter represented critics in an investigation into the ad tech business by Texas.
The Justice Department declined to comment. Mr. Kanter did not immediately respond to Friday’s request for comment.
The request is a tech company’s latest attempt to discredit regulators spearheading antitrust investigations into its practices. Facebook has asked Lina Khan, head of the Federal Trade Commission and a prominent technology critic, to withdraw from the agency’s lawsuit against the company. Amazon also owns Mrs. Khan’s be barred from any antitrust investigation against the company.
While federal officials should avoid real or perceived conflicts of interest, experts said Mr. Kanter’s situation may be different as he has not switched sides in cases against Google. Instead, it moves from being a Google competitor on behalf of private customers to discussing similar concerns on behalf of the government.
Google also said Mr. Kanter had previously made statements that criticized Google and showed it was “biased” whether it violated antitrust laws. Failure to fire Mr. Kanter “could fuel suggestions that the department’s actions may be unduly influenced by Google’s competitors,” said Virginia Gibson, a Google attorney at law firm Hogan Lovells.
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