Microsoft is touting “support for Europe” amid tariff negotiations, going so far as to threaten to sue the Trump administration if it is ordered to suspend European cloud operations. The tech titan’s apparent threat comes after Microsoft dropped a Trump-allied law firm for an anti-Trump litigator currently fighting an executive order from the president.
Microsoft’s latest move cuts against President Donald Trump‘s agenda at a time when other major American corporations, especially technology companies, have worked to strengthen their relationship with the Republican commander in chief.
In a blog post Wednesday announcing “new European digital commitments,” Microsoft’s president and chief legal officer, Brad Smith, suggested that the company would consider launching legal action against the Trump administration, if “necessary.”
“Microsoft has a demonstrated history of pursuing litigation when that has been needed to protect the rights of our customers and other stakeholders … When necessary, we’re prepared to go to court,” Smith said.
“We are confident of our legal rights to ensure continuous operation of our datacenters in Europe,” the Microsoft head added. “And we are prepared to back this confidence with our contractual commitments to European governments.”
Microsoft vowed, among other reassurances, to “uphold Europe’s digital resilience even when there is geopolitical volatility.”
At an event in Brussels, according to Politico, Smith addressed concerns over whether Trump could cut off European access to U.S. cloud services as leverage in a trans-Atlantic trade war.
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The European market reportedly comprises more than a quarter of Microsoft’s business. Microsoft plans to increase its European datacenter capacity by 40% over the next two years, with “tens of billions of dollars” spent annually on this expansion.
“To further cement the nexus between Microsoft and Europe,” the U.S. software giant also pledged to have its cloud computing services in the continent overseen by a European board of directors, consisting exclusively of European nationals and operating under European law.
A spokesperson for Microsoft told the Washington Examiner that the U.S. company has had an enduring foothold in Europe and remains steadfast in supporting operations there.
“We have operated in Europe for more than 40 years, and our company has grown along with our customers,” the Microsoft spokesperson said. “We are committed to supporting across Europe a trusted, world-class cloud and [artificial intelligence] platform that serves as an engine of job creation, economic opportunity, and cybersecurity on both sides of the Atlantic.”
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Some consumer watchdogs have sounded the alarm on what they see as misplaced priorities catering to foreign interests.
“Microsoft’s recent love note to Europe is a master class in flattery and currying favor,” Will Hild, the executive director of Consumers’ Research, said in a statement shared with the Washington Examiner. “It would be nice to see an American-first commitment from the tech giant, but sadly I do not foresee that ever happening.”
Hild said that Microsoft, which has stood by its diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives, “seems bent on undermining the Trump Administration while peddling a divisive woke agenda full of [environmental, social, and governance factors] and DEI.”
“American consumers should be insulted by Microsoft’s two-faced act: a facade of respect overseas and the woke mind virus at home,” Hild said.
Fortune reported Thursday that Microsoft’s quarterly earnings show no sign of a Trump tariff hit and handily surpassed Wall Street forecasts for revenue and profit growth.
Microsoft has a long-standing history of engaging in legal proceedings, including against various U.S. administrations. Microsoft filed four lawsuits against former President Barack Obama’s executive branch, including litigation concerning protecting customer data privacy in the United States and Europe. During Trump’s first term, Microsoft brought an immigration-related discrimination case before the Supreme Court.
This week, the New York Times reported that Microsoft swapped law firms in a significant shareholder case, dropping Simpson Thacher & Bartlett, which recently reached an agreement with the Trump administration to perform $125 million in pro bono work for causes that the president supports, in favor of Trump adversary Jenner & Block, one of the four Big Law firms fighting Trump’s executive orders.
Court filings confirm the switch-up. More than a week ago, several attorneys at Simpson Thacher & Bartlett informed a Delaware court that the firm will no longer be representing Microsoft in a major acquisitions case related to the purchase of Activision Blizzard, maker of the bestselling video game Call of Duty.
On the same day the Simpson Thacher & Bartlett lawyers filed the withdrawal paperwork, at least three partners at Jenner & Block announced they would take on Microsoft’s case.
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Microsoft’s award of business to Jenner & Block signals that the Big Law firms opposing Trump can still attract clientele, given that the ones that ended up inking deals with the Trump administration cited a fear of losing clients in their decisions.
Without elaborating, Microsoft told Reuters that Simpson Thacher & Bartlett would continue to represent the company in other matters.