Apple and Samsung reached a settlement to end a fierce patent dispute which has been ongoing since 2011.

In a court filing, the pair said they have “agreed to drop and settle their remaining claims and counterclaims” in a case related to device design and function patents which escalated to the US Supreme Court. The case was subsequently dismissed by Judge Lucy Koh with prejudice, blocking the pair from resurrecting the battle based on the same claims at a later date.

It is unclear why the companies have decided to come to terms at this stage.

Samsung in May failed to win a bid to lower the amount of damages it owed to Apple based on the court’s 2012 finding it infringed the latter’s patents, but pledged to “consider all options to obtain an outcome that does not hinder creativity and fair competition for all companies and consumers”.

Both companies declined to comment on the settlement. However, Apple directed reporters to its statement from the May verdict, in which it noted “this case has always been about more than money” and asserted Samsung had “blatantly copied our design”.