Apple Pushes Back on DOJ Demand for More Recent Documents

Apple and the US Department of Justice (DOJ) are at odds over how recent the documents Apple must hand over should be in the antitrust case against the company. According to a new filing submitted to the court this week, the two sides could not reach agreement on the scope of the newer evidence Apple is being asked to provide.

The parties had previously agreed on a cutoff date of June 20, 2025 for Apple's records. Because the discovery phase is now scheduled to end in late May 2027, government lawyers want that cutoff pushed forward. Apple objects to the request.

The DOJ wants newer documents included

According to the filing, government lawyers are asking Apple to produce documents created up to 30 days before the end of the discovery period. As their rationale, the lawyers say more recent records could help show whether the alleged anticompetitive practices are continuing.

In other words, the DOJ wants documents created after the existing cutoff to be part of the review. If the request is granted, the time span of the records Apple must search and turn over would extend beyond the limit the parties previously settled on.

Apple: a wider search would delay the case

Apple argues that broadening the search would delay the case by several months. The company says it has already reviewed more than 11 million documents and produced more than two million, covering a period of 18 years.

At the core of Apple's objection is the view that a fresh round of searching would stretch the process further. The company also cites the scale of the review it has already carried out as grounds for its opposition.

The case and what comes next

The dispute is part of the case filed in March 2024. The lawsuit alleges that Apple unlawfully maintains a monopoly in the smartphone market by restricting rival apps, services and devices. Apple denies the allegations.

The latest filing asks the court to formally recognize that the parties were unable to resolve the document dispute among themselves. The court will now consider how to move the disagreement forward and whether Apple must produce the more recent documents. Its decision could affect both the scope of discovery and the case schedule, although the delay of several months is for now only Apple's own claim.

The case is a scrutiny of Apple's smartphone market practices that is stretching across years. The argument over document scope shows that discovery is still under way and that the parties remain divided over its limits. The court's guidance will shape how both Apple and the government prepare in the coming months.