By Siobhan Kennedy
In a significant move in the Microsoft antitrust trial, the two sides on Friday agreed to enter into mediation talks which could potentially lead to a settlement in the year-long case. The news came late Friday when Judge Jackson issued a statement saying he had appointed Judge Richard Posner, head of the US Court of Appeals in Chicago, to mediate talks between Microsoft Corp and the Department of Justice. It’s not yet known when the talks will begin, or what form they will take. A spokesperson for the DOJ told ComputerWire that those details will be decided by Judge Posner over the next few days or weeks.
In his statement, Judge Jackson described the talks as voluntary mediation and said that Judge Posner would reside over the discussions in a private capacity meaning that the talks would not take place in court and that Judge Posner would not act as a judge in the proceedings.
The news follows the publication of Judge Jackson’s findings of facts earlier this month. In the 207-page document, Jackson ruled that Microsoft was a monopoly and that it used that power in such as way as to stifle competition and harm consumers.
Both sides issued uncharacteristically short statements about the news. We look forward to working with Judge Posner to try to reach a fair and reasonable solution, said Jim Cullinan, a spokesperson for Microsoft. We think this is potentially a very positive step forward in resolving this case.
Justice Department spokeswoman Gina Talamona said: Posner is a highly respected jurist and we look forward to meeting with him to discuss ways to address the serious competitive problems identified in the court’s findings of facts. She added: The department has always been willing to seek a settlement that would promote competition, innovation and consumer choice.
While the move to mediation talks is significant, it won’t stop the day-to-day court proceedings in the antitrust case itself. In the same statement where he named Judge Posner, Judge Jackson also gave the timeline for the next stage of proceedings; the conclusions of law. The DOJ has to present its conclusions – effectively a reaction to Judge Jackson’s findings of facts – in a 70-page document by December 6, while Microsoft has until January 17.
Reply briefs, where each side gets to argue the points in the other’s conclusions of law, are set for January 24 and January 31 respectively, and oral arguments will be heard by the government on February 22. á
