Samsung seems to be having a rough time and will need some tough lawyers in order to come out of the hole its in. While things went well in the Netherlands last month, Apple has gotten its way in Germany. The German Court has upheld the banning of the Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 due to the similar design in the front of the tablet.

According to Judge Johanna Brueckner-Hofmann, Samsung “didn’t keep enough distance from the Apple design.” While the back of the tablets are quite different, the front part of the Galaxy Tab is “nearly identical” to the iPad.

The court is of the opinion that Apple’s minimalistic design isn’t the only technical solution to make a tablet computer, other designs are possible.Johanna Brueckner-HofmannPresiding Judge - Germany

On a positive note, this ban will not affect the rest of the European nation as Apple intended. Instead this only applies to Germany (which is still bad news). Samsung does claim that it’s not ready to give up and will attempt to make an appeal to counteract this decision.

The ruling severely limits consumer choice in Germany and restricts design innovation and progress in the industrySamsungE-mail Statement

This is very sad news for our fellow German Android fans, but we surely hope Samsung is able to get things back to normal. Let’s hope Google’s new patents can be of use here. It looks like things might get out of hand if something isn’t done soon. What do you guys think? Will Samsung be able to get back up? Will Google and Android manufacturers be able to stop Apple’s (as well as Microsoft’s and Oracle’s) binge suing? Let us know what you think and stay tuned for your usual patent/design lawsuit news.