A judge ordered Google to turn over information Apple has requested in reference to what methods the search giant is using to find internal documents related to Android. The data will be part of a second U.S. patent infringement trial against Android device maker Samsung.
U.S. Magistrate Judge Paul S. Grewal issued the order compelling Google to reveal how it is selecting documents to furnish as part of the discovery process in the so-called “Galaxy Nexus” patent case, reports Bloomberg.
“The court cannot help but note the irony that Google, a pioneer in searching the Internet, is arguing that it would be unduly burdened by producing a list of how it searched its own files,” Judge Grewal wrote in the order.
Google has been given two days to produce the requested information, which will include the search terms that are being used to find all documents related to the case, as well as the names of employees that the documents originated from.
Google had argued that producing the information would be too burdensome, and noted its position as a third-party in the ongoing case. Judge Grewal disagreed, saying, “Third party status does not confer a right to obfuscation or obstinacy.”
The suit is Apple’s second volley against Samsung in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, and is not associated with the high profile jury trial which ended in a $1.05 billion verdict in favor of Apple back in August 2012.
