Apple's trade secret suit against OpenAI set for July 2027 hearing

A formal schedule is now in place in the trade secret lawsuit Apple filed against OpenAI and io Products, which also names two of Apple's former employees. In a case management order issued today, Judge Edward Davila said the hearing will begin on July 19, 2027, at 9:00 a.m.

The order also sets additional deadlines for discovery, filings and pre-hearing steps. The case timeline is now clear, and both Apple and the defendants know which steps they must take, and by when, in the months ahead.

How the schedule came together

The process began with a case management conference on October 14. At that meeting, Judge Davila asked Apple and the defendants to agree on a proposed schedule among themselves and tentatively pointed to July 19, 2027, as the hearing date. The date announced today is therefore not a sudden decision but the formalization of verbal guidance given about two weeks earlier.

The parties had until October 23 to submit their proposals. With today's order, the judge formally approved the schedule and turned the tentative date into the firm hearing date. Beyond the hearing date itself, the order lists additional deadlines for discovery, filings and the pre-hearing stages. The hearing is set for 9:00 a.m.

Background and the discovery process

Apple filed the suit in July. The company alleges that the defendants gained unauthorized access to confidential information about its products and technologies, or used it, and that the information is being used to advance OpenAI's efforts to develop consumer hardware. The defendants are two former Apple employees, OpenAI and io Products.

In recent days, Apple secured two procedural wins on its request for expedited discovery. Judge Davila allowed the company to obtain additional documents and information from the defendants before the normal discovery process begins. Discovery is generally the phase in which the parties exchange documents and information relevant to the case.

Today's order sets the dates for the later stages of the case, following those early procedural steps. The details of the additional deadlines appear in the text of the order.

A deadline for settlement talks

One notable item in the schedule is a provision for the lead attorneys on both sides to meet by June 1 to discuss a possible settlement. In federal civil cases this is a routine procedural step, and it generally gives the parties a chance to consider resolving the dispute out of court.

The provision does not necessarily mean Apple and OpenAI are considering ending the case through a settlement. For now the lawsuit is proceeding under the established schedule, with the hearing set for July 19, 2027.