This Seems Wrong: Samsung Just Hired A Judge Who Ruled In Its Favor Against Apple

This seems odd, and perhaps wrong.

So you know how Samsung and Apple are in the middle of a drawn-out, very expensive legal battle over patents?

Well, back in November, a UK judge named Robin Jacobs came out with a ruling against Apple and in favor of Samsung.

And now?

A filing in a separate case reveals that Samsung is paying Jacobs to be one of nine experts [...] working on behalf of Respondents Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd., Samsung Electronics America, Inc., and Samsung Telecommunications America LLC"."

We're not accusing Samsung or Jacobs of doing anything illegal or unethical. The blogger who discovered Jacob's new employment, Florian Mueller, is pretty sure no laws have been violated.

But it does seem odd that he would go work for Samsung, right?

On the one hand, he's obviously a deeply knowledgeable legal expert in th realm of patents – one who, thanks to his own work experience, has a particular knowledge of Samsung and Apple.

But again…

If you've seen the movie Lincoln, you know that one way Abe convinced wary congressmen to vote for abolishing slavery was by offering them jobs in his administration after their term in office.

A hundred and fifty years later, this practice is still common in DC.

In a 60 Minutes interview a couple years back, formerly-corrupt/now-truth-telling DC lobbyist Jack Abramoff said the way corporations and other special interests convince congress people to vote whichever way is by promising them and their staffs high-paying private sector jobs after their time in the public eye is over.

You can watch that 60 Minutes clip here: