As Reuters reports, in the most recent US hearing in the patent dispute - which began in April and involves more than 20 cases in 10 countries - the district court judge frequently remarked on the similarity between Samsung and Apple's tablets (not a great start for Samsung) and unfortunately for Samsung, the company's legal team was a little confused too.

At one point in the hearing, judge Lucy Koh held a black tablet in each hand above her head and asked Samsung's lawyer, Kathleen Sullivan, if she could identify which company produced which tablet.

Unfortunately for Sullivan (and undoubtedly causing Samsung execs to sink into their seats), she could not pick out her own client's tablet.

After what must have been an uncomfortable silence, Koh asked: "Can any of Samsung's lawyers tell me which one is Samsung and which one is Apple?"

Thankfully, someone from Samsung's red-faced legal team eventually provided the right answer. However, the time it took to figure it out did not go unnoticed.

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"It took a long time to make that distinction," said Koh.

While Folklaw feels sorry for Sullivan - every lawyer has a bad day - it can't help but chuckle at the irony of her courtroom slip-up.