Court Lets Apple Pursue U.S. Ban on Samsung Galaxy Tablet

Apple Inc., maker of the iPhone and iPad, can pursue efforts to halt sales of Samsung Electronics Co.’s Galaxy Tab 10.1 tablet computer in the U.S. while a patent-infringement case is pending, a U.S. appeals court ruled.

Apple’s patent on a design of the tablet is likely to withstand validity challenges, so the trial judge should consider if it’s in the public interest to block sales until a trial can be held, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit ruled today. The court upheld the trial judge’s rejection of a pre-trial ban on Samsung products, including its phones, based on three other Apple patents.