A prominent former attorney who has argued dozens of cases before the Supreme Court and launched a website that provides valuable coverage of all things high court-related has now found himself in serious legal trouble.

Thomas Goldstein, the founder and publisher of SCOTUSblog, was just criminally indicted on nearly two dozen charges by federal prosecutors in Maryland, Reuters reported.

He is alleged to have failed to properly claim or pay taxes on millions of dollars in gambling winnings, used his former law firm's funds to pay off gambling debts, made false statements on mortgage applications, and made fake employment arrangements with the firm for multiple women he was involved with in extramarital affairs, among other things.

Federal indictment alleges multiple criminal acts

According to a Thursday press release from U.S. Attorney for Maryland Erek Barron, Goldstein was indicted on 22 criminal counts that include "tax evasion, assisting in the preparation of false tax returns, failing to pay taxes, and making false statements to two separate mortgage lenders."

A 50-page indictment detailed how Goldstein, a "high-stakes poker player," allegedly repeatedly failed to claim or underreported tens of millions of dollars in gambling winnings on his tax filings between 2016 and 2023, nor did he pay what was due for the winnings he did claim, even as he continued to gamble in high-stakes games around the globe and lead a lavish lifestyle.

Goldstein is further alleged to have schemed to hide millions of dollars in gambling losses, including by using his law firm's funds to cover debts and disguising the payments as "legal fees," as well as filing fraudulent mortgage applications that failed to disclose millions in debts and taxes owed.

On top of that, he is also alleged to have made arrangements to use his firm's assets to provide salaries and health insurance coverage to at least four women he was romantically involved with in extramarital affairs as though they were employees of the firm when those women actually "performed little or no work for the law firm and did not qualify for its health insurance."

Could face decades behind bars if convicted

According to the ABA Journal, Goldstein's 22-count indictment includes four counts of tax evasion, 10 counts of filing false tax returns, five counts of failure to pay taxes owed, and three counts of making false statements on mortgage loan applications.

Given the maximum sentences that could be handed down if convicted of all charges, as laid out in the federal prosecutor's press release, he could face up to 145 years in prison plus fines, restitution, and eventual supervised release, though he would most likely only face a fraction of that potential maximum penalty if and when he ever faces sentencing.

It would be a stunning fall from grace for a man who was recently at the pinnacle of the legal realm in the nation's capital, with a high level of prestige and distinction for arguing more than 40 cases before the Supreme Court, many of which he won before retiring from appellate practice in 2023, and for running the SCOTUSblog website with his wife, Amy Howe, that provides insightful analysis of all things SCOTUS-related.

Represented by two of Trump's personal defense attorneys

According to CNBC, Goldstein has hired two high-profile attorneys to defend him against the charges, John Lauro and Christopher Kise, whose names may sound familiar to some readers as both lawyers recently represented President-elect Donald Trump in some of his criminal cases.

"Mr. Goldstein is a prominent attorney with an impeccable reputation," Lauro and Kise said in a statement. "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," the attorneys added.

CNBC, as well as the other outlets that reported on the indictment, noted that requests for comment from Goldstein and SCOTUSblog about the development went unanswered.