Apple says Samsung’s Galaxy Tab 10.1 design is too similar to the iPad – and a judge has agreed.

Samsung is being forced to pull its new tablet off store shelves in Britain, where the device just launched last week, after a German court granted Apple a preliminary injunction stopping the sale and marketing of the Galaxy Tab 10.1 across all of Europe, except the Netherlands.

The Regional Court of Dusseldorf backed Apple’s claim that Samsung’s tablet had infringed on its intellectual property and copied elements of the iPad 2.

A Samsung spokesperson said, “Samsung is disappointed with the court's decision and we intend to act immediately to defend our intellectual property rights through the ongoing legal proceedings in Germany and will continue to actively defend these rights throughout the world.” It could be weeks before any appeal is heard.

In April of this year, the battle between Apple and Samsung heated up when Apple filed a lawsuit in the United States alleging the Korean manufacturer violated its intellectual property in the design of its mobile devices. 
 
That filing asks the court for a preliminary injunction to keep Samsung from making, selling, and importing the Galaxy series of Smartphones and tablets, including the Galaxy S 4G, Infuse 4G, Droid Charge smartphones, and the Galaxy Tab 10.1 tablet. Apple claims its interface and design features were copied and these products infringe on three of its design patents, and one utility patent. Soon after, Samsung filed its own countersuit, alleging that Apple was infringing on several of its patents.