Supreme Court Lawyer Says He Lost Up to $15m from Poker

A whitecollar professional, and a Supreme Court lawyer of all things, should have a theoretical edge at the green felt, but that is not what always happened in the case of Tom Goldstein.

The former Supreme Court lawyer has paid dearly for his poker proclivity after, last January, he was indicted on charges of tax evasion and allegedly using company funds to sustain his gambling habit.

Goldstein Opens Up about His Gambling Ordeal 

In a candid interview with The New York Times Magazine, Goldstein recounted his story and how he estimates having lost anything between $10 million and $15 million, while also running a debt tied to his gambling.

Yet, it has not always been bad for Goldstein, who claims to have won $26 million against Alec Gores, a businessman. Goldsten’s gambling was not entirely limited to poker either, as he quickly developed a taste for private high-stakes blackjack games.

At one point, he burned through $9 million, but received a credit from an unspecified billionaire at the time. Another time, Goldstein hit $50 million, all in winnings, from gambling.

Most of the money he used was by “investors,” backers who would let someone play with their money and then split any ensuing profits – a standard practice in poker circles where talented players, Goldstein included, take someone else’s money to try and win.

He Wants to Return to Poker Once His Legal Battle Is Over 

But Goldstein’s fortune turned sour when he came under the blows of a federal prosecutor – one Stanley Okula, who uncovered his tax evasion and dug deeper into his gambling. 

Goldstein was indicted in Maryland federal court, with the prosecutor citing tax evasion and syphoning funds from Goldstein’s law firm to fund his gambling habit.

Presently, Goldstein is out on bail, and he is not allowed to play poker, but he doesn’t rule that he will one day continue, especially when the court case against him is brought to a close.