Judge denies Apple’s request to ban 26 Samsung phones
A federal judge late Monday denied Apple Inc.’s request for a permanent ban on 26 Samsung Electronics Co. smartphones that a jury had found infringed on Apple patents for the iPhone and the iPad.
But U.S. District Judge Lucy Koh also rejected Samsung’s motion for a new trial based on jury misconduct.
The rulings were part of a series of decisions Koh has been making on motions both sides have brought since Apple won a $1-billion jury verdict last summer.
PHOTOS: Devices in the Apple Samsung trial
Koh noted that the infringing technology amounted to a small portion of the Samsung products’ functionality. Blocking sale of the smartphones — including the Fascinate, Epic 4G and Galaxy SII — on these grounds would unfairly deprive consumers of the right to buy them, she wrote.
Koh also ruled against Samsung’s request to have the verdict tossed out amid allegations that the jury foreman should not have been allowed to participate because he had previously been involved in patent litigation.
Both sides are expected to appeal.
PHOTOS: Devices in the Apple Samsung trial
Separately, Apple has filed a second patent-infringement case against Samsung, alleging that the South Korean company’s newer phones violate Apple patents. That case, also pending before Koh, isn’t expected to go to trial until 2014.
During a hearing on the motions this month, Koh urged each side to reach a global settlement of their claims. But there has been no sign that either company is willing to back down from legal battles now lodged in courtrooms and with regulatory agencies worldwide.
Apple spokeswoman Kristin Huguet said the company had no comment on the ruling. A Samsung representative had not responded to a request for comment Monday night.
