Visa, DOJ Trade Accusations As Debit Antitrust Fight Nears Key Deadline
By CU Today Staff —
NEW YORK--Visa and the Justice Department are trading accusations over delays in the government’s antitrust lawsuit against the payments giant, with an Oct. 16 deadline approaching for completion of fact discovery, according to Payments Dive.
Both sides have asked a federal judge in New York to revise the schedule in the nearly two-year-old case, which accuses Visa of illegally monopolizing the U.S. debit card market.
Payments Dive reported DOJ attorney Michele Trichler told U.S. District Judge John Koeltl that “Visa has not meaningfully engaged” with government efforts since early July to schedule employee depositions, accusing the company of “dilatory behavior” and “gamesmanship.” Visa attorney Kieran Gostin countered that while both sides agree an extension is necessary, they disagree over its length and terms, and he blamed some delays on what Visa considers the government’s “extremely broad and burdensome” document demands.
Koeltl said in an order this week that filings from the two sides were “riddled with explicit and implicit accusations of unreasonableness,” according to Payments Dive, and referred the scheduling dispute to Magistrate Judge Sarah Cave. Cave has set an Aug. 28 hearing. Visa said roughly 150 depositions remain across the DOJ case and related private litigation, while the government is seeking to depose 48 Visa witnesses and has not ruled out adding more.
The DOJ sued Visa in September 2024, alleging the company maintains an illegal monopoly in U.S. debit-card network services, allegations Visa has denied. Payments Dive reported Visa has produced about 5.7 million documents and expects to turn over more by the end of August, while more than 150 attorneys are working on its document review. No trial date has been set, but under the current schedule the case is likely to reach trial in 2028.
Originally reported by CU Today.