NEW YORK (AP) — The brother of designer Kenneth Cole says he was vindicated on Monday by a federal appeals court’s decision to overturn his criminal fraud conviction.

Neil Cole said he’s been fighting over a decade to clear his name after federal authorities claimed that he committed securities fraud while running Iconix Brand Group Inc., the company he founded that partnered with some big names in the entertainment world, including Madonna, Jay-Z and Pharrell Williams.

“It’s wonderful,” Cole said in a telephone interview about the written decision by the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Manhattan.

Cole said one of the first people he spoke with after the appeals court ruled was New York City mayoral candidate Andrew Cuomo, whose sister is married to Kenneth Cole.

“I was really hop

See Full Page