The US Supreme Court is hearing a 9-year-old case about Xbox
The original suit, filed in 2007, was contested by Microsoft, according to GeekWire. Ever since then, it has passed through various US courts and the case is now being heard in the Supreme Court.
According to Microsoft, just 0.4% of users experienced the scratching issue which means it is not eligible for a class action lawsuit.
The case was initially dismissed as a class lawsuit - one that is made up of multiple people - meaning that each plaintiff would have to proceed on their own. This would have been difficult in a case that accused Microsoft of breaking game discs en masse.
The plaintiffs argued that it wasn't the specific circumstances of each scratched disc that mattered, but the fact many people were complaining about it, according to GeekWire. The lawsuit was filed again in 2011 and has made it to the US Supreme Court via the appeals process.
According to GeekWire, the lawyers for the plaintiffs requested that the lawsuit be thrown out so that it could be appealed on the specific issue of class action status, and then taken to the Supreme Court.
The outcome of the case is far from clear-cut. The US Supreme Court will initially be looking at whether it can review a case brought to it via fancy legal footwork. After that decision, the case will either be dismissed or it will progress.
According to the SCOTUSBlog, the court is looking at whether it can "review an order denying class certification after the named plaintiffs voluntarily dismiss their individual claims with prejudice."
Business Insider has reached out to Microsoft to ask about the lawsuit. We will update the post when we hear back.