Advertisers could recoup a chunk of their Google ad spend, lawyers say

Several law firms around the country are recruiting clients who bought Google search or display ads between August 2016 and the present, saying they may be eligible for payouts from the tech giant. 

What’s happening: The U.S. government, joined by several states, has brought two separate antitrust cases against Google. In 2024, a federal judge ruled that Google had illegally monopolized online search and search advertising, while in 2025, another federal judge ruled that the company had illegally monopolized certain digital advertising technology. 

• In both cases, the Department of Justice argued that Google’s monopoly power allowed it to charge advertisers more than they would have paid in a competitive market.
• The courts are now forcing Google to change some of its business practices, but advertisers seeking compensation for alleged overcharges must go through arbitration rather than the courts, as specified in Google’s advertising terms. 

Why it matters: “We believe that most eligible businesses could recover up to 30% of their ad spend on Google Ads,” says the website of Chicago-based firm Keller Postman, which has been leading a mass arbitration effort. 

• The firm began filing claims on behalf of advertisers this spring, and attorney Ashley Keller told Homepros that it has filed “thousands” already. 
• “We’re representing small businesses, medium-sized businesses, huge companies, everything in between,” he said. “There’s just an array of folks who, of course, rely on Google to get the word out about their products and services, and are owed money from the misbehavior that is well documented in these very thorough federal court opinions.” 

Of note: The cases don’t apply to Local Services Ads (LSA). 

Go deeper: Claimants must establish the difference between what they spent with Google and what they would have spent had there not been a monopoly. Because antitrust law entitles treble damages, that amount can be tripled.

• “This is where we come in, because hiring economists to conduct that type of analysis — one, it costs a lot of money,” attorney Marshall Silver of New York-based Silver Arbitration told Homepros. It wouldn’t be practical for a sole advertiser, but law firms are hiring experts to devise formulas that can be applied to numerous cases, he explained.  
• Silver said experts believe Google overcharged by five to 10 percent, so with that figure tripled, advertisers stand to recover 15 to 30 percent of their ad spend. He surmised that Google could have to pay out $400 to $500 billion. “The numbers are kind of staggering and shocking,” he said. 
• Both Keller’s and Silver’s firms have tools on their websites for advertisers to estimate potential payouts. These attorneys work on contingency; they charge nothing upfront but take 40 percent of any awards (although Silver will charge 35 percent for people filing soon, and Keller would lower his fee for clients with “very significant spend”). 

The other side: Google has appealed the underlying federal case pertaining to search and vowed to appeal the case pertaining to its ad technology. 

• “These claims are unfounded,” Christa Muldoon, a Google spokesperson, told Bloomberg in April. “In a highly competitive market, advertisers choose our tools to grow their businesses and reach new customers.” 
• Google didn’t respond to Homepros’ request for comment.

Looking ahead: Keller said that “regardless of what the courts say, the arbitrators still technically get to decide for themselves. So the whole idea of arbitration is: You’re not in the court system. You’re not bound by what a judge says. Your decision-maker is an arbitrator… But of course, what the appellate courts say will matter.” 

• He added, “These arbitrations are in a pretty early phase, and I wouldn’t expect any final decisions for at least a year.” 
• If a claimant wins in arbitration but the appeals court later sides with Google, “a later ruling generally won’t undo your award,” Silver’s website explains. “So there’s some good motivation actually to pursue the claim right now rather than waiting till later,” he told Homepros.