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Google Paid the DOJ $2.3 Million to Avoid a Jury in Its Ad-Tech Case—But Still Lost

Google’s $2,289,751 check mooted the DOJ’s damages claim and led to a judge-only trial—not a settlement. The court later found Google liable on major ad-tech antitrust claims.
From TheFinanceBase Team4 min to read
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Google tendered the U.S. government $2,289,751 in 2024—the amount the DOJ said it was owed for federal agencies’ advertising purchases, including treble damages and prejudgment interest. A judge treated the damages claim as moot and removed the jury demand. The case still went to trial, and in 2025 the judge found Google liable on major antitrust claims.

Which Google lawsuit was this?

This was United States and Plaintiff States v. Google LLC, Case No. 1:23-cv-00108, filed in January 2023 in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia. The DOJ and state plaintiffs challenged Google’s role in digital advertising technology used to sell and buy online display ads. The DOJ’s complaint announcement describes the allegations; the official case page lists filings and later proceedings.

It was not the DOJ’s separate search-monopoly case, filed in Washington, D.C., and it was not the separate Texas-led ad-tech litigation. The Virginia case concerned the tools and transactions connecting publishers, advertisers, and ad exchanges.

What did the DOJ allege?

The government alleged that Google used acquisitions, contractual restrictions, and auction practices to control important parts of the open-web advertising pipeline. The main components included:

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  • Publisher ad servers: Tools publishers use to manage and sell available ad space. The case focused on Google’s DFP, now associated with Google Ad Manager.
  • Ad exchanges: Marketplaces that connect publisher inventory with advertiser demand. The government focused on Google’s AdX.
  • Advertiser-side tools: Systems advertisers and agencies use to buy ad inventory.
  • Tying and auction practices: The complaint alleged that Google connected products and used its position across the stack to disadvantage rivals.

The DOJ sought monetary damages for federal agencies it said had overpaid for online display advertising, as well as broader conduct and structural remedies. The allegations were claims to be proved in court, not established facts at the time they were filed. The complaint announcement sets out the initial case theory.

Why did the damages claim affect the jury trial?

The government’s demand for money mattered because a live claim for monetary damages can support a jury demand under the Seventh Amendment. Google argued that once it tendered the full amount the United States claimed, the damages dispute was moot—and that the government consequently no longer had a basis to insist on a jury.

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The DOJ opposed the maneuver, arguing that payment did not erase its broader claims for equitable relief, such as court orders addressing Google’s conduct. On June 11, 2024, the court granted Google’s motion to dismiss the damages claim as moot and strike the jury demand. The result was a bench trial, meaning the judge—not a jury—would decide liability. See the FindLaw summary of the order and Associated Press coverage of the ruling.

How much did Google tender, and what did the amount mean?

Google sent a cashier’s check for $2,289,751. Court reporting and legal analysis described that as the United States’ claimed damages amount, calculated with treble damages and prejudgment interest. It was not a damages award entered after a finding that Google had violated the law. The payment mooted that monetary claim; it did not establish liability or settle the government’s requests for other relief. Ars Technica’s report on the check and the case summary give the amount and procedural context.

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That distinction matters: paying a claimed amount, settling a lawsuit, admitting wrongdoing, and being found liable are different legal events. The check itself was not an admission of an antitrust violation.

What happened after the jury demand was struck?

The judge held a liability trial in September 2024 that lasted about 15 days. On April 17, 2025, the court found that Google unlawfully maintained monopoly power in the open-web publisher ad-server and ad-exchange markets, and unlawfully tied DFP to AdX. The ruling did not accept every government theory: the plaintiffs had not proved the proposed market for open-web display advertiser ad networks, according to the published opinion summary.

So the accurate description is that Google lost major liability claims, not that it lost every claim the government brought. The DOJ’s April 17, 2025 announcement summarizes the ruling.

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What remedies remained after the liability ruling?

The damages payment did not resolve the government’s requests for changes to Google’s ad-tech businesses. Proposed remedies included divestiture of AdX, DFP divestiture as a possible backstop, and measures involving access to data, interoperability, or code. Government proposals are requests to the court, not remedies automatically imposed by the liability decision.

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The DOJ’s revised proposed remedies and proposed final judgment set out government proposals. The official case page lists continuing remedies and compliance proceedings, including joint status reports dated July 22 and July 30, 2026. Those filings show that the case’s practical consequences continued beyond the jury dispute; they do not, by themselves, establish an unlisted final outcome.

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What the check did—and did not—accomplish

It did It did not
Moot the United States’ damages claim for the amount tendered. Settle the entire antitrust case.
Lead the court to strike the jury demand and hold a bench trial. Prevent a liability trial.
Change who decided the evidence and claims: a judge rather than a jury. Prevent the court from finding Google liable on major claims.
Address the monetary claim tied to federal agencies’ ad purchases. Resolve the government’s requests for broader conduct or structural relief.

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