As the Apple vs. Samsung trial got going in earnest today, it did not take long for events to take a turn for the unusual. After yet another attempt to introduce evidence regarding its F700 phone, in development months before the iPhone, Samsung decided to appeal to the media, setting off an angry reaction from Judge Lucy Koh.
The involvement of the media came when Samsung e-mailed slides the court had disallowed to the press along with a statement claiming, “the excluded evidence would have established beyond doubt that Samsung did not copy the iPhone design.” Upon learning of media reports about the F700, Judge Koh was so incensed that she demaned Samsung lead counsel John Quinn provide a declaration regarding his role in releasing the info.
All of this occurred after Apple included a slide in their opening statements showing the F700. Samsung saw this as Apple opening the door to introducing the F700 evidence through yet another motion. Judge Koh had ruled on several previous occasions that the evidence could not be introduced because Samsung had not complied with discovery deadlines. That gambit had already annoyed Judge Koh and led to some heated exchanges in the courtroom. The media release only served to pour more fuel on the fire.
Keep watching TalkAndroid for more updates as this trial will surely continue to produce noteworthy courtroom drama.
source: The Verge