The U.S. Supreme Court agrees to hear Apple’s appeal related to a contempt ruling in its long-running antitrust dispute with Epic Games over App Store policies and fees. The case stems from earlier litigation in which a lower court determined Apple violated an injunction entered after a 2021 decision. Apple later complied by changing App Store “anti-steering” linking rules, but Epic alleged Apple did not follow the terms of the order in practice, including through the fees Apple charged when developers used external links to alternative payment options.
A district judge found Apple in contempt in 2025 for willfully violating the 2021 injunction, and the ruling restricted Apple’s ability to collect fees tied to links in the U.S. App Store. Apple appealed, and the Ninth Circuit upheld the contempt finding.
Now, multiple outlets report the Supreme Court will review whether lower courts made legal errors in two areas, including how the injunction’s wording and scope are interpreted—particularly whether the contempt determination relied too heavily on the “spirit” of the order rather than clear, express language, and how broadly any required relief applies.
The Supreme Court is expected to hear the case in its next term beginning in October.
