Nov 27 (Reuters) - Alphabet's Google asked a

U.S. appeals court on Wednesday to throw out a jury verdict and

a judge's order forcing it to revamp its app store Play.

In its first detailed argument to the San Francisco-based

9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, Google said the trial judge

made legal errors that unfairly benefited the plaintiff,

"Fortnite" maker Epic Games.

Requiring a "dramatic redesign" of Google Play and its

mobile-device operating system Android will hurt app developers

and consumers, Google said in its court filing.

Epic's 2020 lawsuit accused Google of monopolizing how

consumers access apps on Android devices and how they pay for

transactions within apps. The Cary, North Carolina-based company

persuaded a San Francisco jury last year that Google illegally

stifled competition.

Based on the jury's findings, U.S. District Judge James

Donato ordered Google in October to let users download rival app

stores within Play and make Play's app catalog available to

those competitors, among other reforms.

The order, which would bind Google for three years, is on

hold pending review in the 9th Circuit.

Google told the appeals court on Wednesday that a jury

should never have heard Epic's lawsuit because it sought to

enjoin Google's conduct, not collect damages. It said Donato

unfairly allowed Epic to tell jurors that Google and Apple ( AAPL )

are not competitors for app distribution and in-app

payments.

The filing said Donato was wrong to issue an injunction

affecting users and developers nationwide, not just Epic. Google

said the order made Donato "a central planner responsible for

product design."

The 9th Circuit said it will hear oral arguments on Feb. 3,

with a ruling expected later next year.