Microsoft has been given until July 25, 2025, to formally respond to a substantial £2 billion legal claim filed against it in the UK Competition Appeal Tribunal (CAT).
The claim, brought on behalf of thousands of UK businesses, alleges that Microsoft has overcharged them for running its Windows server software in competitor cloud environments.
The CAT has confirmed a court hearing for December 11, 2025, to determine whether a collective proceedings order (CPO) should be granted.
A CPO is a crucial legal mechanism that allows multiple claimants with similar grievances to consolidate their cases into a single anti-competition lawsuit.
The legal action is being spearheaded by competition lawyer Maria Luisa Stasi and her team at Scott+Scott, a firm specializing in complex dispute resolution.
In a statement, Stasi’s team highlighted the significance of the upcoming December hearing, stating it “will determine whether the tribunal grants a collective proceedings order, certifying the claim and paving the way for it to proceed to full trial.”
Furthermore, the Tribunal has mandated that Microsoft file its response to the legal claim by July 25, 2025, with Stasi given until October 10, 2025, to submit her reply to Microsoft’s response.
According to Stasi’s updated claim, the UK firms that have joined the action could collectively be owed approximately £2 billion in compensation due to Microsoft’s “controversial cloud licensing tactics.”
Upon the lawsuit’s launch, Stasi articulated its purpose: to “challenge Microsoft’s anti-competitive behaviour” and benefit all UK businesses and organizations forced to pay more for software simply because they opted to run it on non-Microsoft cloud platforms.
Microsoft’s cloud licensing practices have been under intense scrutiny across the UK and Europe for several years.
The UK Competition and Markets Authority (CMA), during its probe into anti-competitive behavior within the UK cloud market, specifically highlighted Microsoft’s practice of charging customers more for running its software in rival clouds as a significant point of contention.
Adding to the pressure, rival cloud providers have also voiced their concerns.
In September 2024, cloud giant Google formally lodged a complaint with the European Commission concerning Microsoft’s cloud licensing practices.
Google’s public cloud arm asserted that Microsoft’s behavior risks harming customers and infringes upon European Union law, further accusing Microsoft of “leveraging its software monopoly” to steer customers towards its Azure public cloud platformts Azure public cloud platform.
