Google has enlisted a major legal heavyweight, Donald Verrilli Jr., who served as Solicitor General under President Barack Obama, to lead its appeal in the high-profile antitrust case brought by the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) over the tech giant’s dominance in online search.

The move comes as Google seeks to overturn a landmark ruling from a federal judge last year, which found that the company unlawfully maintained its monopoly in general search by striking multibillion-dollar deals with phone makers and browser companies to remain the default search engine.

Verrilli, a veteran of multiple Supreme Court cases, is known for defending the Affordable Care Act and arguing some of the Obama administration’s most consequential cases. His appointment signals Google's intent to take the case all the way to the Supreme Court if necessary.

“This is a significant escalation in the legal fight,” said antitrust scholar Eleanor Fox. “By bringing in Verrilli, Google is signaling that it will spare no expense or effort in defending its position and potentially reshaping how antitrust law is interpreted in the digital age.”

The DOJ’s original case, filed in 2020, accused Google of using exclusive contracts to stifle competition and preserve its stranglehold on the search market. The trial, which concluded last year, is considered the most important antitrust showdown since the Microsoft case of the late 1990s.

Google’s legal team argues that consumers choose its search engine because of its superior product, not because of anticompetitive behavior. However, the court’s decision referenced internal documents showing how Google paid billions annually to Apple, Samsung, and others to maintain its default status.

The company now faces a court-imposed remedy that could require it to modify or end many of its default search agreements—measures that could shake up the search and advertising industries worldwide.

Verrilli will work alongside Google’s existing legal counsel, bringing extensive appellate and constitutional law experience to a case that could redefine the boundaries of Big Tech regulation in the United States.

The appeal is expected to begin in the D.C. Circuit Court later this year, with potential for the case to extend well into 2026 or beyond.