Boasberg will also be presiding over the trial and ruling for or against Meta, since there is no jury. His presence adds another layer of intrigue, since he also ruled against Trump’s use of the Alien Enemies Act to deport alleged Venezuelan gang members.

Facebook parent Meta Platforms bought up nascent rivals Instagram and WhatsApp after its attempts to compete had failed, an attorney for the U.S. Federal Trade Commission said at the beginning of a high-stakes trial in Washington on Monday,

The FTC and social media giant Meta made their opening statements as the first big antitrust trial of Trump’s second term gets underway in Judge James E. Boasberg’s courtroom.