SAN JOSE  (AP) — A federal judge has lifted a ban on sales of Samsung Electronics Corp.'s Galaxy 10.1 tablet computer.

U.S. District Judge Lucy Koh ruled Monday the South Korean technology giant is now free to start selling the product in American stores.

The judge had previously banned U.S. sales of the tablet pending the resolution of a sweeping patent trial between Apple Inc. and Samsung over vital technology used in smartphones and tablet computers.

A jury in September ordered Samsung to pay Apple $1 billion after finding many of Samsung's products illegally used technology developed by Apple for its iPhones and iPads. But the jury found that Samsung's Galaxy 10.1 wasn't one of the offending products.

The judge scheduled a December