Prominent Appellate Attorney Convicted of Tax Evasion and Mortgage Fraud

GREENBELT, Md. — A federal jury has convicted Thomas C. Goldstein, a nationally known appellate attorney who argued more than 40 cases before the United States Supreme Court and co-founded the legal website SCOTUSblog, on multiple federal charges including tax evasion and mortgage fraud.

The verdict followed a lengthy trial in the United States District Court for the District of Maryland. Jurors found Goldstein guilty of tax evasion, assisting in the preparation of false tax returns, willful failure to timely pay taxes, and making false statements to mortgage lenders.

According to evidence presented at trial, Goldstein was the sole owner of Goldstein & Russell, P.C., a boutique appellate litigation firm handling complex cases, including matters before the Supreme Court. Prosecutors established that between 2016 and 2023, Goldstein engaged in a sustained scheme to conceal income and avoid tax liabilities while maintaining a high-spending lifestyle tied in part to high-stakes poker activity.

Trial evidence showed that Goldstein failed to timely pay federal taxes and undertook affirmative steps to evade tax obligations for tax year 2016. The scheme included concealing millions of dollars in gambling-related income and transactions, diverting legal fees owed to his firm into personal accounts to cover gambling debts, directing third parties to pay creditors directly rather than routing payments through standard accounting channels, and misclassifying personal expenditures as legitimate firm expenses in corporate records.

Prosecutors presented financial records demonstrating that firm assets were used to satisfy personal gambling obligations and that related entries were recorded as legal-fee expenses. The misclassification reduced reported taxable income and understated tax liabilities.

The jury also heard evidence regarding false statements made in connection with mortgage financing. In 2021, Goldstein sought financing to purchase a $2.6 million residence in Washington, D.C. Mortgage applications required full disclosure of liabilities, outstanding debts, and tax obligations. Evidence introduced at trial showed that Goldstein omitted millions of dollars in liabilities, including more than $14 million owed on promissory notes and outstanding federal tax obligations.

Based on the false disclosures, one lender approved a $1.98 million loan. Federal prosecutors argued that the omissions materially affected lending decisions and constituted mortgage fraud under federal statute.

Tax evasion under federal law requires proof of a willful attempt to evade or defeat tax owed, combined with an affirmative act of concealment. Assisting in the preparation of false tax returns carries separate criminal exposure when knowingly submitting materially false information to the Internal Revenue Service. Making false statements to mortgage lenders can trigger penalties of up to 30 years in prison per count when tied to federally insured financial institutions.

Goldstein faces a maximum statutory penalty of five years in prison for tax evasion, three years for each count of assisting in the preparation of false tax returns, one year for each count of willful failure to pay taxes, and up to 30 years for each count of making false statements to mortgage lenders. Sentencing will be determined by a federal district court judge after consideration of the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and statutory factors. A sentencing date has not yet been scheduled.

The investigation was conducted by IRS Criminal Investigation and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The case is being prosecuted by Senior Litigation Counsel Sean Beaty and Trial Attorneys Emerson Gordon-Marvin and Hayter L. Whitman of the Criminal Division’s Tax Section, along with Assistant U.S. Attorney Adeyemi Adenrele for the District of Maryland.

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