I've taken some introductions to law, but this is not something I'm competent in, but I would assume that the defendants could get the verdict invalidated if they could prove that the judge's affiliation with affiliation with that association was of the nature that he should be unfit for duty.

In all likelyhood, I think the outcome will have a lot to do with how media reacts to this. If they label the judge corrupt and fights for a retrial, the courts of appeal will have a hard time resisting.

well yeah appeals is one thing, but it won't automatically clear them, I'm mainly thinking of how the Ted Stevens case was thrown out after a guilty verdict, due to prosecutor misconduct, surely there is the same thing for judges too.