Epic and Apple Reject a Jury Trial

The lawsuit between Apple and Epic seems to have taken a new turn, with both the companies finally achieving a common ground between them.

When judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers recommended the two companies to have the lawsuit tried in front of a Jury, both of them swiftly declined the next day.

For those out of the loop, last month, Epic Games rolled out an update in Fortnite that allowed players to purchase V-Bucks, the game’s in-game currency, directly from the company.

The update essentially bypassed the payment system set up by both Apple and Google, which led to both of them removing the game from their respective app stores.

Because of this, Epic Games filed a lawsuit against the companies on the grounds of “Antitrust,” but was instead warned by Apple that they would remove Epic’s Developer account from their store, meaning that Epic won’t be able to develop games for iOS anymore.

The filing states that “During September 28, 2020, hearing on Epic’s Motion for a Preliminary Injunction, the Court indicated that it ‘[did not] want to try two cases’ and was ‘inclined to try both cases at once,’ and asked the parties to inform the Court by 5:00 PM PT on September 29, 2020, whether either party demands a jury trial.”

“Epic and Apple have met and conferred, and the parties agree that Epic’s claims and Apple’s counterclaims should be tried by the Court, and not by a jury. Therefore, with Epic’s consent, Apple hereby withdraws its demand for a jury trial pursuant to Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 38(d). The parties respectfully request that the case (including any claims and counterclaims) proceed to a bench trial on a schedule determined by the Court.”

Regardless, it is still a pleasing change to see Epic actually finding something in common with their enemies. However, whether or not this plays out in their favor is still yet to be seen.