Ruling the amount excessive, the 2nd District Court of Appeals said XtraJet and its owner Jeffrey Borer shouldn’t have to pay that much to attorneys Mark Geragos and Pat Harris.

“The amount awarded to the plaintiffs was so great that it shocks the conscience,” the court wrote in its ruling.

But that doesn’t mean the now-defunct jet company is off the hook. The appellate court sent the case back to the trial judge responsible for the original ruling, saying a new trial based on the original damages could take place, or the lawyers could accept a reduced award of $750,000.

The lawyer representing Geragos indicated his client was considering a new trial.

“The judges acknowledge the behavior was reprehensible,” attorney Brian Kabateck said.

Last March Superior Court Judge Soussan Bruguera ordered the Xtrajet and Borer to pay the lawyers $20 million in damages for recording in-flight conversations between Jackson and his lawyers in order to sell the tape to the media. Jackson dropped out as a plaintiff in the suit in 2005.

However, the appellate court noted that neither Geragos nor Harris was adversely affected by the tape’s contents, mainly because it was never publicly released and didn’t contain any privileged lawyer-to-client conversation.

Meanwhile, ExtraJet attorney Lloyd Kirschbaum said he was pleased with the appellate court’s ruling.

“It’s outstanding,” Kirschbaum said. “You can’t be damaged by a tape no one has seen.”