Paramount Skydance has requested that a judge schedule its upcoming antitrust trial for November. Meanwhile, a coalition of states along with the Writers Guild of America is advocating for the trial to be set for April 2027.
This scheduling is crucial for Paramount, as the company will be responsible for paying Warner Bros. shareholders $7 million per day starting September 30 until the deal is finalized. Paramount argues that any delay would harm the creative industry, its workers, and consumers.
On July 13, a coalition of 12 states, including California and New York, filed a lawsuit claiming that the $111 billion merger between Paramount and Warner Bros. would unlawfully diminish competition in the basic cable and theatrical distribution markets. The Writers Guild of America submitted a separate lawsuit the following day, asserting that the merger would negatively impact the writers’ market. Paramount contends that the merger will benefit consumers by creating a stronger competitor to streaming services like Netflix and Amazon Prime.
In their joint filing on Friday, the states requested Judge Araceli Martinez-Olguin to set a 12-15 day trial beginning on April 5, 2027. The Writers Guild of America supports this schedule, while Paramount is pushing for a 12-day trial starting on November 4, arguing that delays would extend uncertainty.
“Deciding what projects to commit to, and when, is already difficult for creative professionals trying to find the right opportunities in a dynamic industry; doing so in an atmosphere of intense business uncertainty is even harder,” the company’s lawyers argued.
The states are seeking additional time to gather documents and conduct depositions from Paramount executives. The trial is to be held in federal court in Oakland and will rely heavily on expert testimony from economists.
In their filing, the states argued that Paramount’s proposed schedule is too rushed and impractical.
“Defendants’ proposed schedule would deprive Plaintiff States and the Court of a thorough evidentiary record,” the states argued, noting that it would allow for less than two months of fact discovery and one month of expert discovery. “Their extraordinarily truncated schedule unfairly favors Defendants because they (1) have information Plaintiff States need to prove their case and (2) do not bear the burden of persuasion.”
Paramount is under pressure to close the deal by June 4, 2027. The Writers Guild of America argued that this self-imposed deadline should not influence the trial schedule.
Judge Martinez-Olguin issued a temporary restraining order earlier this month, halting the closure of the deal for 28 days. Although the states were expected to file for a preliminary injunction last week, Paramount unexpectedly agreed to pause the deal until the trial, acknowledging that an injunction was imminent.
The state case presents an unexpected challenge to the deal, which the Department of Justice approved in June. The European Commission and regulators in Australia, China, and other countries have also approved the merger.
“We believe a trial on the merits is the best and most direct way for us to prove what we’ve said from the start — this transaction is lawful, pro-competitive, and raises no antitrust concerns,” a Paramount spokesperson stated, describing the states’ request as a “stonewalling tactic.” “Our request for a November trial date is more than sufficient to give both sides the time they need to conduct discovery, gather evidence, and prepare for trial.”
Attorney General Rob Bonta issued a statement in defense of the scheduling request.
“Our challenge to the unlawful Warner Bros./Paramount merger is a clean-cut antitrust challenge through and through: it’s about protecting the vibrancy of an industry, the pockets of consumers, and the quality of films and television programs that take center stage in many of our lives,” Bonta said. “This challenge deserves careful and thorough review and today my office and attorneys general across the country asked the court for a trial date next spring. We are eager to continue to make our case and look forward to a final determination of the schedule by the court.”
