Another day, another update in the continuing saga of Apple v. Samsung. (You didn’t think the story ended with last year’s big trial in San Jose, did you?)

Late Monday, Samsung filed with a federal court in California, showing that the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) had issued a “Final Office Action” on Apple’s ‘381 patent (commonly known as the “bounce-back” patent), reaffirming that patent’s invalidation.

This rejection will likely be appealed to the Patent Trial and Appeal Board, and conceivably it could be appealed even further (taking longer than the actual trial's appeal).

Last year, Apple received more than $1 billion in damages as a result of Samsung’s infringement on Apple’s patents. This sum was later reduced by $450.5 million. The judge in the case ultimately ordered a new trial on those damages.

As we reported last month, Judge Lucy Koh asked for the new damages trial to take place after the whole case goes up on appeal to the US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, the nation's top patent court.