The iPhone 4 has some reception issues when held a certain way. The problem — which partially stems from iPhone 4's newly designed external antenna — can be viewed as more or less serious, depending on a number of factors. Is it serious enough to spawn a class-action lawsuit? It appears that it is.

The lawsuit against Apple and AT&T has been filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland by Ward & Ward, PLLC and Charles A. Gilman, LLC. on behalf of Kevin McCaffrey, Linda Wrinn and a number of other iPhone 4 owners.

The lawsuit accuses Apple of Defect in Design, Manufacture and Assembly, as well as Breach of Express Warranty. It also makes several claims against both Apple and AT&T, including General Negligence, Deceptive Trade Practices, Intentional Misrepresentation, Negligent Misrepresentation and Fraud by Concealment.

Due to the complexity of the issue, and the fact that some other phones exhibit a similar behavior, it's hard to guess what the outcome of this lawsuit will be. However, it might spur Apple to start working on this problem quickly — before it escalates into something far more serious.

Interestingly enough, another class-action lawsuit for the same issue is in the works; it seems that Apple and AT&T may soon have a couple of these on their hands.

[img credits: Gizmodo]