New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo gave Southern District Judge Jed S. Rakoff something more to think about Friday as the judge aimed to release today his opinion about the latest proposed settlement between the Securities and Exchange Commission and Bank of America stemming from the bank’s $50 billion acquisition of Merrill Lynch & Co.

And with a scheduled trial only one week away, a new controversy is brewing over whether depositions of five individuals, including the bank’s former general counsel Timothy Mayopoulos, taken by Cuomo should be made public.