Supreme Court Blog Publisher Indicted on Tax Charges
Indictment Alleges Multimillion-Dollar Scheme to Evade Federal Income Taxes and Use Law Firm to Cover Gambling Debts
The publisher of a prominent blog about the Supreme Court, Tom Goldstein, was indicted on Thursday in a multimillion-dollar scheme to evade federal income taxes and use money from his law firm to cover gambling debts from high-stakes poker games.
Gambling and Tax Evasion Allegations
According to the 22-count indictment filed in federal court in Maryland, Goldstein, 54, took part in poker games in Beverly Hills, Asia, and elsewhere involving millions of dollars, hid winnings, concealed losses, and misrepresented expenses. Prosecutors said he also submitted false applications to two lenders when seeking a mortgage for a $2.6 million house in Washington, omitting from one more than $14 million he owed at the time. He also had his firm pay salaries and health insurance premiums for women with whom he had personal relationships, but who did little or no work for the firm, according to the indictment.
Allegations Span Seven Years
The allegations in the indictment span seven years, from 2016 to 2022, a period in which Goldstein was regularly appearing in front of the nation’s highest court. In 2016, for example, Goldstein understated his gambling winnings by $3.9 million, the indictment said. Two years later, he returned from Macau to a Washington-area airport with nearly $1 million in cash in a duffel bag. Although he acknowledged to a customs officer that the cash represented gambling winnings, he failed to report the money on his tax return for that year, the indictment said. In 2020 and 2021, he denied on his tax filings making any trades in cryptocurrency, despite more than $10 million in such transactions, according to the indictment.
Defense Response
John Lauro and Christopher Kise, lawyers for Goldstein, released a statement Thursday night saying: "Mr. Goldstein is a prominent attorney with an impeccable reputation. We are deeply disappointed that the government brought these charges in a rush to judgment without understanding all of the important facts. Our client intends to vigorously contest these charges and we expect he will be exonerated at trial."
Biography and Background
A biography on the blog’s website notes that Goldstein retired from appellate advocacy in 2023. He has taught Supreme Court advocacy at Harvard’s and Stanford’s law schools.
Conclusion
The indictment against Tom Goldstein, the publisher of SCOTUSblog, alleges a multimillion-dollar scheme to evade federal income taxes and use money from his law firm to cover gambling debts. The allegations span seven years and include a range of financial misdeeds, from hiding winnings and concealing losses to misrepresenting expenses and submitting false applications.
Frequently Asked Questions
- Who is Tom Goldstein?
Tom Goldstein is the publisher of the SCOTUSblog, a prominent blog about the Supreme Court. - What are the allegations against Tom Goldstein?
The allegations include a multimillion-dollar scheme to evade federal income taxes and use money from his law firm to cover gambling debts from high-stakes poker games. - What is the outcome of the indictment?
Goldstein has been indicted on 22 counts and his lawyers have vowed to contest the charges and seek his exoneration at trial.
