State judge rules in favor of former Gov. Cuomo in book deal legal battle

NEW YORK, N.Y. — A state judge ruled on Tuesday that the Joint Commission on Public Ethics did not act within the law when it ordered Cuomo to re-pay more than $5 million in profits.

Former Gov. Andrew Cuomo is celebrating a legal victory in the battle over the profits from his book deal.

A state judge ruled on Tuesday that the Joint Commission on Public Ethics did not act within the law when it ordered Cuomo to re-pay more than $5 million in profits from his book because it didn’t hold a hearing where Cuomo could defend himself.

He had been accused of using state workers and resources to write that book.
JCOPE has since disbanded and the judge did leave open the possibility that the new state ethics commission could penalize Cuomo.

“As we’ve said all along, everything – the AG’s report, the Assembly, and now JCOPE – has been about politics – the facts and the law be damned – and every time one of these cases goes before a neutral arbiter, the law prevails. As the court rightly pointed out, JCOPE – clearly in an attempt to settle petty political grievances – violated its own laws and procedures. Every commissioner and staff member who went along with this farce should be ashamed, embarrassed, and not be allowed within 10 feet of a courtroom,” Rich Azzopardi, spokesman for Cuomo said.

The full ruling is available below: