Apple And Samsung Asked To Streamline Patent Case

It seems that even the courts are getting sick of Apple and Samsung's bickering over patent issues. Both companies have been ordered by a US judge to once again try and reduce the number of claims against each other by Monday. The trial is scheduled to start on July 30th, but the judge presiding over the case has ordered the two smartphone manufacturers to try and streamline the case before everything kicks off.

This marks the second time that the judge has asked both companies to simplify the case. Judge Lucy Koh of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California is worried that the case is too complicated for a jury to understand in one trial. While both companies have dropped patents from the case already, both say the other side is unwilling to cooperate in order to further streamline the case.

Each company will have 25 hours to present their case to a jury, but right now there are an alarmingly large number of issues that could be presented: an antitrust case, 5 "trade dress" claims, 6 trademark infringements, 16 patent infringements, and a total of 37 products that are being accused of violations. The judge believes that's too much for a jury, and if the companies can't come to an agreement of what to drop, the case could be pushed back to 2013.

Apple say that it's committed to meeting the trial date, with its lawyer Harold McElhinny saying that he did most of the pursuading for a more streamlined case. He asked the judge for more information on how much the two companies could bring to trial, but she refused to list specifics. On Tuesday, Apple requested that Samsung logos on court used TVs be obscured so as not to influence a jury, and also asked the court to deny any evidence based on statements made by Steve Jobs.

[via Computer World]