How many law suits are filed each year?

Microsoft vigorously defended itself in the public arena, claiming that its attempts to innovate were under attack by rival companies jealous at its success, and that government litigation was merely their pawn. A full-page ad run in The Washington Post and The New York Times on June 2, 1999 by The Independent Institute (which is funded by Microsoft) delivered "An Open Letter to President Clinton From 240 Economists On Antitrust Protectionism." It said, in part, "Consumers did not ask for these antitrust actions - rival business firms did. Consumers of high technology have enjoyed falling prices, expanding outputs, and a breathtaking array of new products and innovations. ... Increasingly, however, some firms have sought to handicap their rivals' races by turning to government for protection. ... Many of these cases are based on speculation about some vaguely specified consumer harm in some unspecified future, and many of the proposed interventions will weaken successful U.S. firms and impede their competitiveness abroad."