In an eyebrow-raising move, the Department of Justice recently announced that Assistant Attorney General Jonathan Kanter has been cleared to lead an investigation into whether Google has knowingly participated in anti-competitive behaviors violating the Sherman Antitrust Act of 1890.

Critics of the move, including Google itself, point out that during Kanter’s recent years in private practice, he represented a long list of the company’s competitors, such as Microsoft and Yelp. During this time, he advocated for an “antitrust case against Google,” which should have prevented him from leading the investigation since it represents a conflict of interest.

Justice’s decision has important implications for U.S. v. Google, which is set to go to trial in September. That case stems from a 2020 Justice complaint against Google alleging that the company has for “many years, unfairly maintained and extended monopolies” over important markets like “general search services.”

Published in its entirety in Inside Sources.

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Nate Scherer is a Policy Analyst with the American Consumer Institute where he researches and writes about a diverse range of consumer issues. He previously served as a Policy Analyst at the Reason Foundation and has also worked for several other nonprofits including the Texas Public Policy Foundation and the Leadership Institute. More recently, he worked an educator for Fairfax County Public Schools and performed research for Georgetown University’s Edunomics Lab. He possesses a Master of Arts in Teaching in Secondary Education, Social Studies, and has a Bachelor of Arts in Politics. He currently resides in Falls Church, VA.