Form coalitions of small businesses to collectively advocate and perhaps sue under existing laws.
Organize small businesses into a collective voice that can document harm, advocate together, and bring strategic cases when appropriate. Support legal work that enables groups like independent app developers or retailers to challenge exclusionary practices without standing alone. Pair litigation with storytelling so this reads as Main Street versus concentrated power, not a purely technical dispute.
Why this works
- It personalizes the fight – not just abstract consumers, but your local bookstore owner testifying how Amazon’s dominance hurt them.
- Jurors/judges may be sympathetic.
- Also, a unified small biz voice counters big biz lobby by giving cover to politicians (“I’m doing this for Main Street, not corporate interests”).
Open Markets Institute
Tax-deductibleResearch and advocacy to confront monopolies
Mechanism
About LitigationHow Open Markets Institute uses funding
- Recruit small businesses and founders across affected sectors and create a trusted coalition channel.
- Collect concrete examples of gatekeeper fees, exclusionary contracts, and retaliation fears described in the cause.
- Screen claims for standing, venue, and remedy clarity; choose cases with strong facts and manageable downside.
- Fund litigation operations and coordinate filings, including amicus and expert support where needed.
- Manage participant risk with privacy, communications discipline, and retaliation planning.
- Share outcomes and lessons publicly to grow leverage and deter repeat conduct.
Milestones
Checkpoints and the expected timing for each step
- 1
Coalition intake + governance set
0–30 daysA membership and intake process exists and participants understand guardrails.
- 2
Case pipeline screened
1–3 monthsPotential claims are vetted and a prioritized list of viable cases is selected.
- 3
First filings + amplification
3–6 monthsA strategic case is filed and coalition messaging explains the harm in plain language.
- 4
Remedy + expansion
6–18 monthsThe case progresses toward settlement or ruling and the coalition expands.