The Apple-Samsung court case is starting to appear like it is being between two sides of children who have been watching too much Perry Mason. Samsung has already got into hot water for telling the world about some evidence that the long suffering US District Judge Lucy Koh has banned. Now Apple has had a crack at trying to sneak some banned evidence to the jury.

Apple attorney Bill Lee made a reference  to Koh's pre-trial order blocking sales of some Samsung products. Koh had forbidden the parties from discussing in front of the jury. When he was called out on it, Lee appologised, but Koh said she had difficulty believing that was not intentional.

They jury has been sent out while Apple and Samsung lawyers regularly accuse each other of unfair ambushes, dirty public relations tactics and doctoring evidence. Observers say that the court case appears to be a fight between two kids with an exasperated Koh managing the trial like a schoolmarm.

Koh's problem is that the trail and the patent wars that have followed would not have happened if both sides had acted like grown-ups in the first place. It all started when the late Steve Jobs got it into his head that other people were nicking his ideas, when that was his job. Samsung replied in kind. Now both sides have to go to court with fairly ridiculous cases and their lawyers have to use every dodgy trick in the book to make themselves appear viable.

The danger is that if Apple wins, it would no longer have to come up with anything new and could stop all its rivals from making any products. So far we have only heard Apple's evidence.

Koh has taken to timing the attorneys' legal arguments to stop them sucking up too much time with pointless “evidence”. Samsung has to get the jurors past any intuitive emotional response that the two tablets look similar and focus on the specific legal requirements of each patent. Only one juror owns an iPhone and a few have Samsungs. Samsung is considered the underdog in the case.