Rose McGowan, Ashley Judd and others react to the overturning of ...

Actors, activists and lawyers have reacted to the overturning of a 2020 rape conviction of disgraced Hollywood mogul Harvey Weinstein, calling it a major step back for survivors of sexual abuse.

The case, which was a landmark ruling for the MeToo movement, was overturned by the New York Court of Appeals.

The court found in a 4-3 decision that the judge in the 2020 trial made a mistake by letting women, who claimed Weinstein assaulted them but who were not part of the charges he faced, to testify.

The remedy for the "egregious errors" is a new trial, the judge said.

Weinstein, 72, has maintained his innocence. He remains in prison, serving a 16-year jail sentence on a separate rape conviction in California.

"Judges throughout this nation are going to scale back what they allow to come into evidence because it's a constitutional right to tell your side of the story without having so much baggage from your whole life being put on display to a jury", said Arthur Aidala, a lawyer for Weinstein.

Ashley Judd, the first actor to come forward with allegations against Weinstein, said the ruling was an "institutional betrayal".

"This today is an act of institutional betrayal, and our institutions betray survivors of male sexual violence", she said.

Judd's allegation that Weinstein sexually harassed her in 1996, as well as other allegations of sexual misconduct against Weinstein were published in an article by the New York Times in 2017. It started an outpouring of similar accusations against Weinstein, amplifying the #MeToo movement.

Actor Ashley Judd was one of the first to come forward with allegations of sexual misconduct against Weinstein.(Reuters: Chip East, file)

In an interview with the BBC, Judd said the overturning made for a "hard day for survivors".

"But we live in our truth, we know what happened and the truth is consistent," she said.

"Oftentimes survivors say that the betrayal and the moral injury we suffer within the system is worse than the sexual bodily invasion we experienced in the first place."

Actor Rose McGowan, who has accused Weinstein of assaulting her at the 1997 Sundance Film Festival, said the ruling would "never overturn who we are".

"No matter what they overturn, they cannot take away who we are, what we know, what we've gone through and what we can achieve in this life," McGowan said in a video posted on Instagram.

"We are not victims, we are people that were injured by evil, and the evil sticks together, as witnessed and evidenced today. But we are better," she said.

"Some days we get knocked more on our butts than others. But we can rise and we can find the tiny joys no matter what."

Tarana Burke, the founder of the #MeToo movement said she was devastated "for the survivors who are connected to this case" and the survivors who had "found some solace and catharsis" in the verdict.

"I am preparing myself for the onslaught of what does this mean to the #MeToo movement," Ms Burke said.

"I want you to hear this: this is not a blow to the movement. It is a clarion call, and we are prepared to answer that call."

Lindsay Goldbrum represtend six of Weinstein's accusers, including Tarale Wulff, one of the women who testified during Weinstein's criminal trial in New York.

"It's a step back in a way that will prevent a lot of women and men who are victims of sexual assault from being willing to come forward, and it's definitely a disappointing ruling in coming out of the Court of Appeals," she told ABC NewsRadio.

The three women who had testimony related to the crimes Weinstein was charged with will need to testify again in a re-trial, Ms Goldbrum said.

"One of the huge setbacks that this re-trial will mean to do is to re-traumatise these women."

Douglas Wigdor, who represented eight women against Weinstein, described the verdict as "tragic".

"Today's decision is a major step back in holding those accountable for acts of sexual violence," he said.

Silence breakers, a group representing women who accused Weinstein and others of sexual misconduct, said the ruling was "disheartening" and "profoundly unjust".

"But this ruling does not diminish the validity of our experiences or our truth; it's merely a setback. The man found guilty continues to serve time in a California prison," the group said in a statement to USA Today.

"When survivors everywhere broke their silence in 2017, the world changed. We continue to stand strong and advocate for that change. We will continue to fight for justice for survivors everywhere."

ABC/wires