Tribunal certifies £5bn Google ad claim for 900,000 UK firms

The Competition Appeal Tribunal has granted a Collective Proceedings Order against Google on an opt-out basis. The claim is valued at £5bn.

It is brought by Or Brook Class Representative Limited, led by the competition law academic Dr Or Brook.

The claim accuses Google of abusing its dominance in general search to overcharge British businesses and organisations for search advertising.

Opt-out matters more than the headline number for most founders. It means UK businesses that bought search ads are automatically class members, with no form to fill in and no registration to complete.

The tribunal puts the class at nearly 900,000 UK businesses and organisations.

Google tried to stop the case proceeding on an opt-out basis. The tribunal rejected that bid on Wednesday.

The order lets the case go to a full trial on its merits. It is not a finding of liability against Google, and the company has not been found to have overcharged anyone.

The law firm running the claim is Geradin Partners. Its partner Patrick Teague said the tribunal recognised Dr Brook's "major, careful, detailed contributions" to the case.

The wider regulatory backdrop is the Competition and Markets Authority, which has been pressing Google to change its practices in search and digital advertising.

For a founder, the practical position is that nothing is required of you right now. If your company bought Google search ads in the UK, you are in the class unless you take steps to leave it.

The tribunal sets the terms on which class members may opt out, including any deadline. Those terms are not stated in the material the Gazette has seen, so check the tribunal's published order before assuming either way.

There is also no payout to plan around. Certification is the start of a trial process, not the end of one, and any compensation depends on a case that has yet to be argued.