Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) has asked the U.S. Supreme Court to review how and when it can charge commissions on mobile purchases made through third-party payment systems in its ongoing legal battle with Epic Games.

On April 6, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit granted Apple's motion to stay. Epic quickly pushed back, asking the Ninth Circuit to revisit the stay and filed an opposition to Apple's request.

"We just asked the Ninth Circuit Court to reconsider today's decision granting Apple's motion to stay the mandate. We also filed our opposition to the motion to stay, which states: "Apple's effort to stay this Court's mandate is about nothing other than delay," Epic wrote in a post on X.

The company argued that "staying the mandate and delaying remand proceedings that will need to happen no matter what the Supreme Court does, simply delays relief for consumers and allows Apple to continue reaping supracompetitive profits from IAP."

The dispute traces back to 2020. Epic added a payment option inside Fortnite designed to bypass Apple's in-app purchasing system. A 2021 ruling largely favored Apple, ruling that it was not a monopoly under the federal antitrust law. Still, the ruling required Apple to let developers point users towards other ways to pay.

Apple appealed the decision to the Supreme Court, which declined to hear the case. The tech giant then permitted external payment links, but added a 27% commission on those transactions. Epic challenged that approach, and the Northern District of California sided with Epic, finding Apple in contempt, a decision the Ninth Circuit upheld in December 2025.

The appeals court said Apple's 27% commission defeated the purpose of permitting payment alternatives, but it did not establish a new commission rate. Apple requested a rehearing, which was denied last month.

Now, Apple has decided to take the hearing to the Supreme Court. If the Supreme Court accepts the case, Apple is expected to argue that courts shouldn't restrict how it charges for its services, or impose limits on commissions.

Apple and Epic Games were contacted for comment.

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