NEW YORK: Harvey Weinstein`s 2020 conviction for sexual assault and rape was overturned on Thursday by New York`s highest court, reopening the landmark case that launched the #MeToo movement and highlighting the challenges of holding powerful men accountable.

In a 4-3 decision, the state Court of Appeals said the trial judge made a critical mistake by letting women testify that Weinstein assaulted them even though they were not part of the charges he faced.

Arthur Aidala, a lawyer for Weinstein, did not immediately respond to requests for comment. He told the New York Times that the decision upheld `the most basic principles` that criminal defendants should have at a trial.

The court also said the trial judge compounded the error by letting Weinstein be cross-examined in a way that portrayed him in a `highly prejudicial` light.

`It is an abuse of judicial discretion to permit untested allegations of nothing more than bad behavior that destroys a defendant`s character but sheds no light on their credibility as related to the criminal charges, Judge Jenny Rivera wrote for the majority.

`The remedy for these egregious errors is a new trial,` she added.

In a sharp dissent, Judge Madeline Singas said the decision `perpetuates outdated notions of sexual violence and allows predators to escape accountability`.

She also accused the majority of `whitewashing the facts` and continuing a `disturbing trend` of overturning jury verdicts in sexual violence cases.

Former comedian Bill Cosby saw his 2018 sexual assault conviction overturned three years later by Pennsylvania`s highest court. It said a 2005 agreement not to charge Cosby with drugging and assaulting a woman meant he should not have been charged a decade later.

Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, whose predecessor Cyrus Vance brought the case, will have to decide how to proceed against Weinstein.

`We will do everything in our power to retry this case, and remain steadfast in our commitment to survivors of sexual assault,` Emily Tuttle, a spokesperson for Bragg, said in an email.

Weinstein, 72, has been serving a 23-year prison sentence, after being convicted in February 2020 of sexually assaulting a former production assistant in 2006, and raping an aspiring actress in 2013.

#MeToo movement Weinstein`s conviction in New York was considered a milestone for #MeToo, in which women have accused hundreds of men in entertainment, media, politics and other fields of sexual misconduct.

`Today`s decision is a major step back in holding those accountable for acts of sexual violence,` said Douglas Wigdor, a lawyer who represented eight of Weinstein`s accusers. `It will require the victims to endure yet another trial.

Weinstein co-founded the Miramax film studio, whose hit movies included Shakespeare in Love and Pulp Fiction. His own eponymous film studio filed for bankruptcy in March 2018.-Reuters