#3 Legal Files: Week Ending 20 October 2026
This is a weekly roundup of court cases, rulings and regulatory actions involving the sports watch, ring and fitness platform companies this site covers. Each entry states who is involved, what is alleged or decided, where the matter stands and what it could mean for athletes. Allegations are reported as allegations.
Other sites push out an alert for every case and ruling as it happens. This roundup gathers the week into a single read and keeps your inbox clear. The weekly Deep Dive Digest email covers the wider sports technology news for those who want it.
Also in the Deep Dive series: Regulatory Filing, Trademark & Patent Filing, Fix Files, Feature Files and the Deep Dive Digest.
The week was dominated by the aftermath of the record $5.7 billion jury verdict against Apple over the haptic technology in the iPhone and Apple Watch. Apple has asked the trial judge to throw the verdict out or order a new trial, while Taction has asked the same court to add further damages, interest and an ongoing royalty that would run until 2035. No other development inside the window met this roundup’s standard for inclusion.
Taction v Apple: Apple asks the court to overturn the $5.7 billion haptics verdict as Taction seeks more
The case is Taction Technology, Inc. v. Apple Inc., No. 3:21-cv-00812, before Judge Todd Robinson in the US District Court for the Southern District of California in San Diego. On 13 October 2026 Apple filed a motion for judgment as a matter of law or, in the alternative, a new trial on infringement, validity and damages. Apple argues that Taction offered no evidence of what its patented technology was worth, that the damages figure amounted to guesswork, and that Taction’s infringement testing did not measure what the patents require. Separately, in a motion reported by Reuters on 19 October, Taction asked the court to add damages for iPhone and Apple Watch sales made between April and September 2026, prejudgment interest at California’s statutory rate of 7 per cent, post-judgment interest and an ongoing royalty on future sales until the patents expire in September 2035.
A jury found on 25 September 2026 that Apple’s Taptic Engine infringed two Taction patents covering damped, electromagnetically driven vibration, and awarded $5,721,961,750. The jury did not find that the infringement was wilful. Apple had won summary judgment of non-infringement in 2023, but the Federal Circuit sent the case back for trial. According to reports of Taction’s motion, it argues that the Apple Watch Series 12 and Apple Watch Ultra 4 are not materially different from the products the jury considered, so the royalty should extend to them. The verdict has not yet been entered as a final judgment, no ruling date on either motion has been reported, and Apple has said it will appeal.
For Apple Watch owners, the motions as reported seek money rather than an order to stop sales, so the immediate risk to the availability of current watches appears low. If the court grants an ongoing royalty on current models, it would add a per-unit cost to every Apple Watch with a Taptic Engine sold in the US for the remaining life of the patents, and that cost could in time feed into pricing or into a redesign of the haptic hardware. If Apple’s motion succeeds, the award could be reduced, removed or sent back to a new jury, and either outcome is likely to reach the Federal Circuit.
Evidence: Confirmed by two reports. Source: US District Court for the Southern District of California, reported from around the web.
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Last Updated on 20 October 2026 by tfk the5krunner
Small things I always use
- Garmin 90-degree charging adapter: Charges your Garmin from any USB-C cable. Essential when travelling. I use one.
- Body Glide: The blue anti-chafe stick swimmers and runners carry. I use it.
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- Cellucor C4: My pre-workout before hard sessions.
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Watches and sensors
- Polar H10: My daily driver for waking HRV.
- Polar Verity Sense: My backup arm-worn HR sensor.
- Nomad bedside charger: Charges my iPhone and Apple Watch overnight. I use it, and many of their bands.
- Train.Red: The best muscle oxygen sensor I’ve used.
- Tymewear: Accurate heart rate and reliable ventilatory zones. I use it to pace endurance rides over an hour.
- Garmin Forerunner 970: A pro-grade triathlon watch. I use this.
- Apple Watch Ultra 4: My daily smartwatch. No phone needed on rides.
- Garmin Fenix 9 Pro: I’ve just bought one.
On the bike
- Continental GP5000 for everyday riding, and Aero 111 on the front for special occasions.
- Helmets: Specialized S-Works Evade 3 for road riding, and Rudy Project Wing for TT-style races. I use both.
- Ravemen FR300: A front light that mounts under your Garmin or Wahoo. I use one.
- Wahoo TRACKR Radar: I use it on one bike and Varia on the other. They perform the same.
- Garmin Varia RTL515: Radar that warns you of cars from behind. I use this model.
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Home and indoor training
- NPE Runn: Makes my basic treadmill smart, sending more accurate speed and distance to my watch and Zwift. I use it.
- Google Wifi: Keeps Zwift connected in my pain cave. I use it.
- Apple TV 4K: Zwift on the big screen. I use two.
- Google Nest Doorbell (wired, 2nd gen): My video doorbell, running in both Google Home and Apple Home. I use it.
Health, recovery and sleep
- FreeStyle Libre 3 Plus: Shows how my blood sugar responds to diet.
- hDrop: Measures my sweat loss in summer and indoors.
- Fourth Frontier Zone: Checks my heart under load in hard sessions.
- Oura Ring 5: My partner’s recovery tracker of choice.
- Eight Sleep: A cooling mattress cover my partner and I use nightly.
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tfk is the founder and author of the5krunner, an independent endurance sports technology publication. With 20 years of hands-on testing of GPS watches and wearables, and competing in triathlons at an international age-group level, tfk provides in-depth expert analysis of fitness technology for serious athletes and endurance sport competitors. See the gear tfk uses. ID
