JCOPE Responds to Trump Lawsuit

Capital NY reports that the Joint Commission on Public Ethics (JCOPE) has hired former U.S. Magistrate David Homer of Carter Conboy in Albany to defend it against a lawsuit filed by Donald Trump. (Read my earlier post about the Trump lawsuit here.)

The article includes links to Trump’s Nov. 24^th filing (opposing JCOPE’s motion to dismiss), and a Dec. 12 filing by JCOPE. It’s all very lawyerly and complicated, but the two are arguing over whether JCOPE is required to notify someone who has filed a complaint with JCOPE as to JCOPE’s decision on such complaint.

By way of background, JCOPE’s enabling statute [Executive Law § 94(13)(a)] requires it to vote on whether to pursue an investigation within 45 days of receiving a complaint. But the law does not include any specific requirement for JCOPE to notify the complaining party of its decision. In the past, JCOPE has not disclosed when it has voted to commence an investigation.