Apple-Google Lawsuit Show Signs of Life

Apple could get another opportunity in court to press claims that Google's Motorola Mobility unlawfully copied iPhone patents. A US appeals court suggested that an influential Chicago-based federal judge went too far last year in throwing out Apple's lawsuit.

The judge, Richard Posner, made waves in June of last year when he tossed a dispute between the companies out of court. Appearing before a three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, Apple lawyer E. Joshua Rosenkranz argued that the iPhone maker had stronger patent claims than Motorola. The panel appeared receptive to notable parts of his case. Chief Judge Randall Rader suggested that Judge Posner made "significant" errors in interpreting at least one of Apple's patents and in concluding that its patents involved minor phone features that competitors could easily design around. All three judges appeared to question whether Judge Posner was too quick to throw out Apple's damages claims. It was less clear, however, whether the court believed Apple should get another chance to seek an injunction barring the sale of certain Motorola devices.