Google Taps Freshfields to Fight US Suit Seeking Ad Unit Breakup

Alphabet Inc.’s Google has turned to Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer’s Eric Mahr to lead its defense in a lawsuit aiming to break up the company’s advertising technology business.

Mahr is a former director of litigation in the Justice Department’s antitrust division, which along with eight states sued Google on Tuesday. The company confirmed Mahr is its lead outside lawyer in the case.

He joined Freshfields as a partner in 2018 after spending nearly two years at Justice. At the law firm he represented Google in another antitrust case filed by more than a dozen US state attorneys general accusing the ...