By Mike Scarcella
GREENBELT, Maryland, Jan 15 (Reuters) – Prosecutors told a jury on Thursday that prominent Washington lawyer Tom Goldstein lived a double life of deception stemming from his side career as a high-stakes poker player, as a trial kicked off against an attorney who argued more than 40 cases before the U.S. Supreme Court.
A 12-member jury heard opening statements and witness testimony in the trial in the Washington suburb of Greenbelt, Maryland.
The U.S. Justice Department accused Goldstein of failing to report millions of dollars he won in poker games, lying on loan documents and making improper payments through his law firm Goldstein & Russell. Goldstein pleaded not guilty.
“Those poker winnings fueled an increasingly lavish and luxurious lifestyle for Mr. Goldstein,” prosecutor Hayter Whitman said in his opening statement to jurors. “This case is about Mr. Goldstein’s choices and his deception.”
TURNED DOWN PLEA DEAL TWICE
Goldstein, who in addition to arguing cases before the top U.S. judicial body also founded the Supreme Court-focused SCOTUSblog news and analysis website, twice turned down an offer of a plea deal from the Justice Department.
“The evidence will show that the government has got this wrong,” Stephany Reaves, a lawyer for Goldstein, said in the defense’s opening statement.
Reaves said Goldstein acted in good faith at all times, relying on his accountants and law office managers. Reaves added that the evidence will not support the prosecution’s claim of willful deception.
“He was a busy lawyer, running his own law firm and arguing cases at the Supreme Court,” Reaves said, adding that prosecutors “cherry-picked” transactions out of an “ocean” to allege criminal activity.
Goldstein faces 16 criminal counts, including tax evasion, aiding and abetting in the preparation of false and fraudulent tax returns, willful failure to pay taxes and making false statements on loan applications.
The trial is expected to last about four weeks before U.S. District Judge Lydia Kay Griggsby.
Goldstein’s indictment in January 2025 stunned Washington’s legal community, where he was widely seen as one of the top appellate lawyers in the country.
A prosecutor told jurors “Spider-Man” actor Tobey Maguire, who once paid Goldstein $500,000 for legal work, could testify in the trial. The government said the money was directed to a person to whom Goldstein owed a poker debt. Representatives for Maguire, who is not accused of wrongdoing, could not immediately be reached for comment.
The government’s first witnesses included Alec Gores, a businessman in California who lost high-stakes matches in 2016 to Goldstein and paid him $26 million. Gores, CEO of the Gores Group investment firm, recalled messaging with Goldstein prior to the matches to ensure there were financial guarantees.
Goldstein was part of the team that represented Democrat Al Gore in the legal fight that resulted in the Supreme Court decision that gave Republican George W. Bush a victory in the 2000 U.S. presidential election. Goldstein’s other clients have included Google and “Fortnite” maker Epic Games. He retired from his law practice in 2023.
The trial will resume on Tuesday.
(Reporting by Mike ScarcellaEditing by Will Dunham, David Bario, Shri Navaratnam, Rod Nickel)
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