The legal battle is the latest round in a series of claims and counterclaims of patent breaches by the rival technology heavyweights playing out in courtrooms around the world.

Samsung Electronics Co. lawyer Bas Berghuis told a civil judge at The Hague District Court that Apple “never bothered to ask about licenses” before it started selling 3G-enabled iPhones.

Apple is expected to argue that the chips its devices use for 3G come from suppliers who do have licenses with Samsung.