Ten Jurors Selected In Apple v. Samsung Patent Trial

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Judge Birss thinks the Galaxy Tab just isn't as cool. We agree.
And here we go.

An interesting jury has been selected today in the high-profile patent case between Apple and Samsung. Of course, any details about said jury would be interesting simply due to their inclusion in such a pivotal legal case, but the list does sound like somewhat of a lead in to a stand-up comedy routine. An insurance agent, an unemployed video game enthusiast, and a project manager for AT&T are three of the ten jurors selected today to decide the issues behind the patent case between the two electronics superstar companies.

Three women and seven men make up the selected jury, including a store operations manager, a systems engineer and a payroll manager and consultant. They were asked a variety of questions, including their choice of mobile phones, how the current economic downturn has affected them, if they’ve had experience with the legal system, as well as questions about any potential connections with the involved companies, which, in addition to Samsung and Apple, include Google and its recently acquired Motorola Mobility department.

This must have been tough, considering that the court is in the Silicon Valley, with thousands of people employed in the area by these very companies, especially Apple and Google. As we reported earlier, an Apple retail employee was one of the potential jurors, but he was excused from the pool after he expressed a preference for Apple to win the case.

Another interesting removal from the jury pool was a man who held over 120 patents, who, along with a handful of other patent holders in the group, did make the final cut. It would probably be a bit tough to remain fair and partial in a case that resonates strongly with your own business practices.

Judge Lucy Koh, the US District court justice who has been handling the case, spent many hours this evening interacting with potential jurors, interviewing them for possible jury spots. The opening statements in the case should start tomorrow.

In Apple Inc v. Samsung Electronics Co Ltd et al, No. 11-1846, Apple brought claims of patent infringement to court, and then Samsung countersued with several of its own claims. Both companies have been proposing and appealing various pre-trial issues, including which documents can be sealed from the public eye. Finally, the trial can begin in earnest.

The trial is expected to last four weeks, so stay tuned for more updates as things continue to happen.

Source: Reuters

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