Apple Wins Lawsuit: Apple Escapes Credit Card Lawsuit Trouble in California

Apple Wins Lawsuit: It seems as if Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) spends quite a bit of time in the courtroom. If the Cupertino-based company is not fighting against Samsung over a patent issue, they are taking on the state of California.

Most recently, Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) was part of this case:

Apple Inc vs. The Superior Court of Los Angeles County and David Krescent, S199384.

According to Reuters, the company came out on top. Apple, along with other online retailers, “did not break California law by requiring consumers to provide their address and phone numbers as a condition of accepting credit card payments, the state’s high court ruled on Monday.”

Fortunately for Apple, the California Supreme Court decided in its favor on the basis that “privacy protections for credit cards do not apply to online purchases that are downloaded electronically.”

Until the ruling, nobody really knew what was going to happen. This was due in large part to a similar ruling in by the same court in 2011. Here is a brief excerpt from the article:

“The ruling comes after the same court in 2011 said that those privacy protections do apply to brick and mortar retailers, finding that they could not request a customer’s ZIP code during a credit card transaction.”

Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) was the defendant in the class action case brought forth by a consumer who downloaded media from the company’s iTunes service.

In an interesting twist, Wal-Mart and eBay filed briefs that supported Apple.

Justice Goodwin Liu, one of the California Supreme Court justices on the case, said the following:

“These ominous assertions, though eye-catching, do not withstand scrutiny. Unlike a brick-and-mortar retailer, an online retailer cannot visually inspect the credit card, the signature on the back of the card, or the customer’s photo identification.”

Reuters reached out to Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) as well as the plaintiff’s attorney, but neither could be reached for comment.

While things don’t always go as planned for Apple in the courtroom, this time around the company came out on top.

How do you feel about Apple’s recent courtroom drama? Be sure to share your thoughts below.

Check back here for more updates on Apple Wins Lawsuit.

DISCLOSURE: I have no positions in any stock mentioned.

For more news stories, visit the following pages:

John Goltermann of Obermeyer Asset Management Talks Apple Inc.

Apple Inc. Buys Patents from Maya-Systems Inc.

Apple Inc. Dominates Internet Video On Demand Market