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ROSS Intelligence Claims Thomson Reuters Uses 'Tying Scheme' to Thwart Westlaw Competition

By Alaina Lancaster
February 01, 2021

ROSS Intelligence is alleging that Thomson Reuters uses anticompetitive behavior to maintain Westlaw's dominance in the legal research space, according to a complaint filed in late January.

The counterclaims come in a lawsuit brought by Thomson Reuters against San Francisco-based legal research firm ROSS. In May, Thomson Reuters sued ROSS for allegedly working with a third party to scrape Westlaw's copyrighted material with a bot to develop the artificial intelligence featured in its platform. Ross announced in December that it would be shutting down its operations as a result of the costs of the lawsuit and inability to fundraise.

ROSS' counsel from Crowell & Moring and Potter Anderson & Corroon assert that Westlaw uses restrictive licensing conditions "supported by a web of sham copyrights and intimidation tactics to crush potential rivals like ROSS," according to the claims filed in Delaware federal court.

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