Attorney with Numerous Supreme Court Appearances Faces Federal Charges
Thomas Goldstein serves as the publisher for SCOTUSblog.
A legal practitioner who runs a well-known blog focused on the U.S. Supreme Court and has presented cases before the justices numerous times, Goldstein was charged on January 16 with tax evasion, assisting in the preparation of false tax returns, failing to pay taxes, and making false statements.
Prosecutors state that Goldstein achieved significant wins, including approximately $13.8 million in one game, $26 million in another, and $8.8 million in a third.
The indictment claims that Goldstein underreported his gambling winnings by nearly $4 million in a single year and concealed additional income from the IRS in other years, leading to substantial income tax evasion.
Simultaneously, Goldstein experienced losses in other games and took out various loans to support his gambling activities, as noted in the indictment.
The charges allege that Goldstein utilized funds from his law firm, Goldstein & Russell, to settle gambling-related debts, resulting in the firm reporting lower earnings than it actually made.
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The indictment further alleges that Goldstein engaged in relationships with over a dozen women, transferring hundreds of thousands of dollars to them and employing four of them at his firm as fictitious employees to provide them with health insurance.
From 2016 through 2021, with the exception of 2018, Goldstein reportedly failed to pay taxes owed on income he did report, while allegedly spending millions on travel, vacation rentals, luxury items, and gambling debts.
Furthermore, Goldstein was charged with making false statements after allegedly submitting mortgage applications to secure funds for a $2.6 million home in Washington, during which he neglected to disclose existing liabilities, including taxes owed to the IRS.
Goldstein faces the possibility of considerable prison time, including up to 30 years for each of three charges related to making false statements to mortgage lenders.
In addition to his legal pursuits, Goldstein is known for publishing SCOTUSblog, a prominent platform that covers matters concerning the U.S. Supreme Court. He has argued 44 cases before the country’s highest court, including a noteworthy 2020 case on behalf of Google.
Goldstein’s legal representatives expressed in a statement to news outlets: “Mr. Goldstein is a distinguished lawyer with an unblemished reputation. We are profoundly disappointed that the government brought these charges in a haste to judgment without thoroughly considering all crucial facts. Our client plans to vigorously contest these accusations and anticipates being exonerated at trial.”