A Chicago judge struck down Conrad Black's bid for a new fraud trial on Monday, but acquitted his co-defendant Mark Kipnis of one mail fraud conviction.

On July 13, a jury found Black guilty of four charges: three counts of fraud and one of obstruction of justice.

Kipnis and two other co-defendants were also found guilty on various fraud-related charges, relating to the sale of various newspapers owned by Hollinger International.

The men were convicted of taking money from "non-compete fees" from several deals -- money that the prosecution contended should have gone to Hollinger International shareholders.

Judge Amy St. Eve said she was satisfied with all of the convictions except for one count of mail fraud against Kipnis.

"The government introduced more than enough evidence to support each defendant's convictions on the mail fraud counts and defendant Black's obstruction of justice conviction" with one exception, she said Monday in a 39-page ruling.

The jury had found Kipnis and his co-defendants guilty of taking US$600,000 from shareholders -- money the company had received as part of a deal in which some community newspapers were sold to Paxton Media Group and Forum Communications Co.

Executives had claimed the money was meant as an assurance that they would not compete against the new owners of the newspapers, while the U.S. government lawyers said they were simply bonuses that belonged to the shareholders.

St. Eve ruled Monday that the government lacked enough evidence to convict Kipnis on the charge.

"No rational jury could have found that Kipnis had the requisite intent to defraud in connection with supplemental payments," she said.

But she allowed mail fraud convictions to stand against all of the defendants -- including Kipnis -- in connection with US$5.5 million in similar "non-competition payments" they got from the American Publishing Co.

Black, Kipnis, John Boultbee and Peter Atkinson will be sentenced Nov. 30.

David Radler, Black's high-profile nemesis on the stand during his trial, was scheduled to be sentenced later.

Radler was Black's longtime business partner at Hollinger Inc. and Hollinger International. He pleaded guilty in 2005 to one count of fraud, but agreed to a fine of US$250,000 and a 30-month sentence in exchange for testifying against Black.

With files from The Associated Press