Indeed, late Tuesday the government and 19 states filed a request with Judge Jackson to have the Supreme Court review the case. Three of the court's 10 judges will be disqualified from hearing the case. Normally, a three-judge panel reviews a case first before it is considered by the full court. We want this resolved in the quickest way possible. The rush of activity rang down the curtain on a frenetic couple days of court filings.
Time is of the essence here.
The two sides had filed opposing motions with Judge Jackson about whether to put his breakup order on hold. On Monday, the government said Microsoft's request for a stay of restraints on its business practices would damage the public interest and asked the court to hold Microsoft's request in abeyance until the company filed a formal appeal with the court. The trustbusters are keen on sending the case to the Supreme Court, but they were not able to proceed until Microsoft filed its appeal with the appellate court. Many extreme provisions of the judgment start to take effect 90 days after its entry, and Microsoft must begin preparing immediately if it is to be in compliance with the judgment in 84 days. Ruling 'profoundly flawed' Microsoft reacted sharply to Judge Jackson's order to break up the company.