“The Justice Department Monday asked a federal judge to allow its lawsuit against Standard & Poor’s Ratings Services to move forward.

“The filing in a California district court is the latest legal salvo as the world’s largest credit-rating firm and the federal government battle over who is responsible for billions of dollars in investor losses during the financial crisis.

“The Justice Department’s filing is a rebuttal to S&P’s request last month that a federal judge throw out the lawsuit.

“The Justice Department filed a civil lawsuit against S&P, a unit of McGraw Hill Financial Inc., on Feb. 4 in Los Angeles district court.”

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