ALBANY -- A motion to dismiss the lawsuit brought by two people from Madison County and Oneida Nation employees was denied by New York's State Supreme Court. The suit claimed Madison County Attorney John Campanie improperly received more than $800,000 over 13 years from a law firm he helped pick to fight county legal battles with the Oneidas. New York Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli was also named in the lawsuit.

The suit filed in state Supreme Court in Albany says DiNapoli was contacted last October about the allegedly improper payments but failed to do anything about it. The lawsuit was filed on behalf of Steven Mahler and Daniel Garrow, who work for the Oneidas. The Oneidas own and operate the Turning Stone Casino and Resort. It seeks restitution and a court order to end the payments, claiming they violate state and county law.

"Yesterday's ruling affirms what we have said all along. Madison County Attorney John Campanie and New York State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli provided no legal basis for why this suit should be dismissed," said Dan Smith, Spokesman for the Oneida Indian Nation. "By rejecting the efforts of the Madison County Attorney and the New York State Comptroller to avoid answering the charges in these lawsuits, the court has made it clear that this case should proceed on its merits."

Madison County officials have called the lawsuit a "desperate attempt to deny effective counsel to the County of Madison and the State of New York." They say the arrangement for Campaine's pay was first disclosed in 1998 and has long since been public knowledge.

Click here to download and read  a copy of Madison County's response to the lawsuit.