Apple denied request to continue litigation against bankrupt Kodak

U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Allan Gropper said Thursday that Apple cannot pursue litigation against Kodak while the camera company is still in bankruptcy, says a Reuters report. The judge said it would be an "inappropriate way forward" to let Apple pursue current court cases or file new ones at this time.

Last month, Apple asked the court to lift the stay that stopped a heated court case between the two companies over digital photography patents Kodak owns. This case was put on hold when Kodak filed for bankruptcy. As part of the bankruptcy process, Kodak wants to sell off its patent portfolio which includes the patent at the heart of this case.

Apple, however, wants to stop Kodak from selling the patent and threatened to file new litigation until a decision is made on this patent dispute. Now that litigation is no longer an option, Kodak and Apple must go back to the drawing board and resolve this patent dispute in a way that does not interfere with Kodak's bankruptcy case.