Microsoft one step closer to settlement
C|Net | at | by Mike
In a move that could bring Microsoft and the Justice Department closer to an approved settlement deal, a federal judge said Tuesday that both parties had complied with laws governing antitrust settlements. In a memorandum dated Monday but released Tuesday afternoon, U.S. District Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly concluded the settling parties had complied with provisions of the Tunney Act. The memorandum is an important step forward in her approving the November settlement between the Justice Department, Microsoft and nine of 18 states.
"I would expect we will get her final ruling on the merits of the settlement quite soon," said Emmett Stanton, an antitrust attorney with Fenwick & West in Palo Alto, Calif. "There is no reason to issue that if the final decision is not coming fairly promptly."