Ten years and $150 million in legal fees later, Neil Cole, the brother of fashion designer Kenneth Cole, has finally been exonerated of charges related to securities fraud.
Cole was sentenced to 18 months in prison for accounting fraud in 2023. However, earlier today, the 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals in New York ruled that he had been wrongfully convicted due to being tried twice for the same offense—legally known as “double jeopardy.”
Now, the brand master behind Iconix, a company that secured partnership deals with celebrities such as Jay-Z, Madonna, Pharrell Williams, Marla Maples, and Jenny McCarthy, is preparing to go on the offensive.
“I did absolutely nothing wrong. No one could come up with a single document to show I had done anything they accused me of,” Cole told me in an exclusive interview. “This was an example of lawfare, not the pursuit of justice,” he claimed.
He also charged that his second prosecution was an example of “an overzealous, fame-seeking prosecutor trying to make a name for himself.” The Post has reached out to the Southern District for comment.
Cole was initially charged with ten counts by the Department of Justice in 2019, accused of accounting fraud, inflating his company’s earnings, and misleading investors. However, he was acquitted by a jury. Then, in 2021, the federal government charged him again with another count of fraud, leading to a jury conviction. Cole appealed the decision, arguing that he was being tried twice for the same offense.
This ruling ends a multi-year saga that began in 2014, when the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) started investigating civil charges against Cole, then head of Iconix. Cole had founded Iconix in 2005, and it grew to become the second-largest licensing company in the US, behind Disney.
Employing over 150 people, including his two sons, the company generated more than $400 million in annual revenue. Some of Cole’s high-profile clients also came under scrutiny, with the SEC questioning Jay-Z. In response, Cole’s attorneys labeled the case a “celebrity witch-hunt.”
“The government claims I did all this [engage in fraud] to save just $750,000,” said Cole, pointing out that this was an insignificant amount given how lucrative the company was at the time.
Amid legal challenges, Iconix stock plummeted from $40 per share to just thirty cents. In 2021, Cole sold the company to private equity firm Lancer Capital for $585 million—far shy of its $3 billion valuation before the allegations surfaced.
Following his conviction, Cole enlisted the support of two notable figures. Former New York Governor Andrew Cuomo wrote a letter urging a federal judge to impose a lighter sentence. (Cole’s fashionista brother, Kenneth Cole, is married to Cuomo’s sister, Maria.)
Kenneth Cole also penned a letter in support of his brother. Both men highlighted Neil Cole’s philanthropic efforts, noting his board memberships with Crutches 4 Kids, Ronald McDonald House, Memorial Sloan Kettering, and The Mount Sinai Children’s Center Foundation.
Now, after spending more than $150 million on his legal battle and giving up his business, Cole is considering his options. He tells me that, luckily, his insurance company covered the bulk of the legal costs.
“There are a lot of people to be held accountable,” he said. “Twelve out of twelve jurors acquitted me, but the government did everything again to make a case against me.”
“We will try to recoup everything that was spent [on lawyers],” he added.
Of course, the larger damage is reputational.
“You can’t recoup your reputation. This was my life’s work, built from scratch.”
But Cole is ready to start again and plans to launch a new business at the end of the summer.
“I’ve been through hell, but I’m very appreciative to be on the other end.”
https://nypost.com/2025/10/27/business/neil-cole-exonerated-of-accounting-fraud-after-150m-legal-battle/
Be First to Comment