For those who came in late, Apple does not want to pay Qualcomm a huge licensing bill because of Qualcomm’s licensing practices and chipset supply arrangement.

It has asked a UK court to hear the case, even if both companies are American and the US court case has already started.

Qualcomm asked the US Judge Paul Morgan to declare the British court has no right to determine whether it breached competition laws because the matter will efficiently be settled in California, where Apple has been battling the chipmaker since May 2017. Qualcomm says Apple’s complaints have no relevant connection with England and Wales.

The central issues of the dispute -- including Qualcomm’s licensing practices and chipset supply arrangements -- “are already the subject of the proceedings in the Southern District of California” the San Diego-based company said in its court filings. “The similarities with Apple’s allegations in this English action are obvious.”

Apple says England is the proper place for its complaint, as the tech giant is seeking to recover alleged losses across the European Union. “The proceedings do not overlap with other litigation being pursued by Apple against Qualcomm in other jurisdictions”, lawyers for Apple said in its filing. The attorneys claimed Apple’s suit for damages in Europe could not be resolved in the US court.

The dispute first surfaced in January 2017 when Apple filed a lawsuit accusing Qualcomm of overcharging billions of dollars as part of illegal business practices. That followed the US Federal Trade Commission lodging an antitrust case accusing Qualcomm of “illegally maintaining a monopoly for semiconductors used in mobile phones”. 

The European Union’s antitrust arm fined Qualcomm $1.2 billion in January. The EU said payments made by the company to Apple were an illegal ploy to ensure only its chips were used in iPhones and iPads.

If Qualcomm is guilty of breaching competition and other laws in multiple jurisdictions, “it cannot complain about being subject to litigation in those multiple jurisdictions any more than it can complain about being subject to multiple regulatory investigations” in those countries, Apple’s lawyers said in its filing.

Qualcomm maintains Apple’s fight is with the California incorporated parent company, not its subsidiaries in the U.K., which have been named in the suit as “anchors” for establishing a European case.

“None of the U.K. defendants has any chipset sales or licencing role with Apple whatsoever.”