First it was Sharp suing Samsung over LCD TV patents, now Samsung is set to counter-sue Sharp with claims that the Japanese company infringed on Samsung’s patent rights for liquid crystal display devices.In a tit for tat action, Samsung said today that it has filed a suit against Sharp with the US International Trade Commission.

Samsung claims that its new action is totally separate from an earlier suit filed by Sharp against Samsung, also with the US ITC.

Last month it was Samsung fighting off claims that it infringed on four of Sharp’s patents related to technology to improve the picture quality of LCDs.

Last month the US ITC ruled in favour of Sharp and said Samsung should stop selling devices in the US that trespassed on Sharp’s patents.

Dow Jones said that patent infringement lawsuits happen often in the highly competitive flat-panel display industry as companies strive to protect their intellectual properties, although in most cases they end up in cross licensing deals.

Samsung had said it doesn’t expect the earlier ruling by the US trade commission to have a major impact on its business, adding that it has no plans to negotiate with Sharp on the issue, including cross-license pacts.