Are you the proud owner of an IPHONE brand pocketbook? Fear not – a Beijing court has ruled that your bag is safely within the bounds of Chinese copyright law.

In a country where new knockoff products seem to make headlinesevery day, a battle between Apple Inc. and a little-known local firm over the U.S. tech giant’s iPhone trademark would seem to be nothing new.

Yet a recent ruling by the Beijing Municipal High People’s Court presents a rare glimpse into the murkiness of Chinese trademark law – as well as the pitfalls it presents to some U.S. firms.

In late March, the Beijing court ruled in favor of a Chinese company named Beijing Xintong Tiandi Technology Co. that makes wallets, handbags, smartphone cases and a wide range of other leather goods all bearing the name IPHONE, according to an attorney representing the company.

The ruling, which was reported by the authoritative, state-owned Legal Daily newspaper late last month, was the culmination of several rounds of legal wrangling between Apple and Xintong Tiandi, said Xiong Zhi, an attorney representing the Chinese company.