Apple wins another discovery ruling in DOJ antitrust case

A special master has rejected the U.S. Department of Justice’s request to reconsider a ruling that lets Apple seek documents from 14 federal agencies in its antitrust case. The August 26 decision leaves the earlier discovery order in place; it does not resolve whether Apple violated antitrust law.

Apple is using the records to support its argument that some practices challenged by the DOJ are legitimate security and privacy safeguards. The company wants information about how federal agencies evaluate those protections when setting smartphone policies and making purchasing decisions.

The dispute covers agencies including the CIA, FBI, FTC, NASA, NSA, and the Department of Defense. The DOJ argued that Apple’s requests used the wrong legal standard, were too burdensome, and sought information with limited relevance.

Special Master Jose Linares rejected those arguments. His order says the federal agencies are part of the United States for purposes of party discovery, rather than third parties entitled to the additional protections of Rule 45. He also found that the DOJ had not shown the requests were overly burdensome or disproportionate, and rejected broad privilege objections.

The decision is procedural, but it gives Apple more room to gather material for its defense as discovery continues. The documents could help Apple test its claim that privacy and security considerations influenced the product and platform decisions at issue. Their eventual evidentiary weight remains unresolved.

The ruling follows Linares’s July decision allowing the discovery and the DOJ’s subsequent motion for reconsideration. The full opinion and order was filed on August 26.

Source: 9to5Mac