Google at odds with US over protective order for firms tied to lawsuit

Alphabet Inc’s Google and the US Justice Department have failed to reach an agreement over a protective order for third parties like Microsoft that provided data to the government for its lawsuit against the search and advertising giant.

Google is pressing for two in-house attorneys to have access to the confidential data while the Justice Department and state attorneys general involved in the lawsuit have disagreed, Google said in a court filing on Friday.

Google stated it needed the information to prepare an effective defense. It offered to ensure that any confidential information would be made available solely to two in-house attorneys at the offices of Google’s outside counsel or in another secure manner, adding that it would promptly report any disclosure.