The New York State Court of Appeals today unanimously dismissed the appeal of Cornell Professor James Maas from previous adverse court rulings dealing with his suit against Cornell University claiming $1.5 million in damages stemming from a campus determination that he had engaged in behavior that constituted sexual harassment. In a related case brought by Maas' attorney, David Stoll, the court in a 5-1 decision reversed the Appellate Division of Supreme Court's determination that Cornell's disciplinary records were accessible to the public under New York state's Freedom of Information law.

Cornell Counsel James J. Mingle expressed satisfaction with the court's determinations: "These are important victories for the university. The repeated dismissal of Professor Maas' legal claims at every stage of the litigation underscores the fundamental fairness of the university's proceedings. We are particularly pleased with the court's reaffirmation of the policy that the courts should exercise 'the utmost restraint in applying traditional legal rules to disputes within the academic community.' The Court of Appeals reaffirmed Cornell's discretion to fashion internal disciplinary procedures -- and severely restricted judicial review to a very narrow set of circumstances. In addition, the court's determination that Cornell's disciplinary records ought not to be made subject to the Freedom of Information law recognizes the unique hybrid nature of the statutory colleges in which the Legislature has chosen to vest managerial control solely in the hands of Cornell, a private institution."

The court's decision in the Stoll case was written by Chief Judge Judith Kaye, and the decision in the Maas case was written by Judge Joseph Bellacosa. This brings to conclusion the litigation in both cases.