Judge Gives Apple Inc Reprieve In Patent Case Versus Google Inc.-Reuters

Reuters reported that a U.S. judge has agreed to hear Apple Inc's request for an injunction against the sale of some Motorola phones, giving the iPhone maker a chance to head off a damaging ruling in the smartphone patent wars. Last week Judge Richard Posner in Chicago canceled a trial between Google Inc.'s Motorola Mobility unit and Apple Inc, saying in a tentative ruling that neither could prove damages. But in an order, Posner decided to let attorneys plead their case on an injunction before he makes a final decision. Motorola sued Apple in October 2010, a move that was widely seen as a preemptive strike against an imminent Apple lawsuit. Apple filed its own claims against Motorola the same month. Posner issued a series of pretrial rulings that eliminated nearly all of Motorola's patent claims against Apple from the prospective trial, while maintaining more of Apple's claims against Motorola.