Court lifts Samsung Galaxy US sales ban

A US court has lifted a temporary sales ban against Samsung's Galaxy Tab 10.1, allowing the South Korean company to restart selling the product in the United States.

The ban was the result of arch-rival Apple winning a patent dispute against the firm.

There was no infringement and no need for an injunction.

While the Galaxy 10.1 is an older model, the lifting of the ban could still help Samsung in the run-up to the pivotal holiday shopping season.

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"We are pleased with the court's action today, which vindicates our position that there was no infringement of Apple's design patent and that an injunction was not called for," Samsung said in a statement.

Separately, Samsung filed a motion against Apple saying the iPhone 5 had infringed on some of its patents.

The world's top two smartphone makers are locked in patent disputes in 10 countries as they vie for dominance in the lucrative mobile market.

The legal fight began last year when Apple sued Samsung in multiple countries, and Samsung countersued.

The Galaxy tablet ban had been put in place ahead of a month-long trial that pitted the iPhone maker against Samsung in a legal battle that Apple won in August.

However, the jury found that Samsung had not violated the patent that was the basis for the tablet injunction and Samsung argued the sales ban should be lifted.

The sole basis for the preliminary injunction no longer exists since the jury found that Samsung's Galaxy Tab had not violated Apple's D'889 patent.

"The court does not agree with Apple that Samsung's motion for dissolution of the June 26 preliminary injunction cannot be fairly decided without resolving Apple's post-trial motions," Judge Lucy Koh said in her ruling.

Apple could not immediately be reached for comment outside regular U.S. business hours.