Samsung Cites Juror Misconduct, Moves for Mistrial in Apple Case

Samsung has asked a federal court to declare a mistrial in the recent patent infringement lawsuit that resulted in a $1 billion judgment for Apple. Samsung says the jury foreman in the case, Velvin Hogan, lied when asked if he had ever been involved in a lawsuit. In fact, he had been successfully sued by Seagate, his former employer. Samsung is Seagate’s largest shareholder.

All Things D’s John Paczkowski noted, “That suit ultimately forced [Hogan] to file for personal bankruptcy, and Samsung contends that Hogan’s feelings over it could have influenced the verdict in its trial with Apple.”

Hogan told the press that the judge only asked him to disclose cases from the past ten years. “Had I been asked an open-ended question with no time constraint, of course I would’ve disclosed that,” Hogan told Bloomberg’s Joel Rosenblatt. “I’m willing to go in front of the judge to tell her that I had no intention of being on this jury, let alone withholding anything that would’ve allowed me to be excused.”

However, Groklaw points out that according to the transcript, the court asked jurors whether “you or a family member or someone very close to you [has] ever been involved in a lawsuit, either as a plaintiff, a defendant, or as a witness?”

According to Reuters, “A hearing on a range of issues, including the juror allegations, is set for December.”