Justice Challenges Microsoft Accusations

The U.S. government dared Microsoft Corp. to file a bias claim against Harvard law professor Lawrence Lessig, who was appointed by a federal charge to review charges against the software giant. The Justice Department said in its latest court filing that the Redmond, Wash.-based company has made “unfounded and overblown” accusations against Lessig. The government revealed that last year Lessig, a computer expert, e-mailed an attorney he knew at Netscape Communications Corp. to question about whether Microsoft’s Web browser might have damaged his Web page bookmarks. Microsoft claimed in a letter to Lessing that the e-mail exchange shows he has “actual bias against Microsoft,” according to the filing, and the company asked Lessig to disqualify himself immediately. But the Justice Department said that such a request must be made in a formal motion, along with supporting evidence, with U.S. District Judge Thomas Penfield Jackson. Microsoft late Monday released a copy of what it said was the e-mail exchange between Lessig and the Netscape executive. The government has accused Microsoft of violating a 1995 consent decree aimed at increasing competition in the software industry.