Apple's Proposed Samsung Ban Rejected by U.S. Judge
In the latest round of the Apple/Samsung lawsuit in Silicon Valley, Apple was the loser after it lost a petition to ban the sale of certain Samsung devices.
Shortly after the jury ruled in Apple's favor earlier this year, the company filed a motion asking the judge to ban the sale of Samsung's smartphones in the United States. Last week, Judge Lucy Koh rejected the request.
The ruling is the first in a series of decisions Judge Koh will be making in the coming weeks and months. Her first finding may set an unhappy precedent for Apple.
In her decision, the judge noted that banning the smartphones entirely is not in the public interest since only a small part of the phone is infringing, reports the San Francisco Chronicle.
The fact that the infringing features were only a small portion of the total number of features the Samsung phone offered seemed to be important to the decision.
But Apple wasn't the only party disappointed with the judge's ruling. Judge Koh also issued a second ruling that probably didn't make Samsung happy.
Samsung had asked for a new trial after information about the jury's foreman came to light. The company accused him of lying to get on the jury, but Koh denied the request for a new trial.
So far Samsung's lawyers have said they'll review the court's decision before deciding what to do next. That may mean an appeal will be forthcoming.
In response to the court's ruling on the smartphone ban, Samsung announced that it is dropping similar claims against Apple in Europe, reports Reuters. Samsung had previously filed lawsuits aimed at banning the sale of Apple products in Germany, Britain, Italy, and the Netherlands where courts ruled that Samsung did not infringe on Apple's patents.
The battle between the two companies still rages on here in America. Samsung has asked the judge to decrease the jury's award while Apple has asked for it to be increased.
Judge Koh's ruling on the appropriate amount of damages to award should be made in the coming months.
Related Resources:
- Apple loses bid to ban U.S. sales of some Samsung smartphones (CBS News)
- Apple Samsung Verdict: Apple Wins $1.05 Billion (FindLaw's California Case Law Blog)
- Apple Must Pay Samsung's UK Legal Fees: Lessons for GCs (FindLaw's In House)