Overturning a Bank Fraud Conviction

How Our Attorneys Successfully Challenged Prosecutorial Overreach

When our client was convicted of bank fraud for misrepresentations in mortgage loan applications, our attorneys identified a fundamental legal flaw: the government charged him under a statute that didn’t apply. The loans came from mortgage companies—not banks—at a time when the law didn’t yet treat the two as equivalent. We built an appellate strategy grounded in legal precision, arguing that prosecutors misapplied federal criminal statutes and failed to prove essential elements of the offense.

Our team focused on statutory interpretation, proving that the mortgage companies involved were not “financial institutions” under the federal bank fraud statute in 2006–2007. We demonstrated that our client had no intent to defraud a bank and that the losses weren’t suffered by banks themselves. We also exposed how the government improperly used the longer statute of limitations for bank fraud after missing the deadline to file other charges. While the appeal was pending, we successfully secured our client’s release, ensuring he never served a day in prison.

In August 2019, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit reversed all three convictions, ordered an acquittal, and sharply criticized the government’s overreach. This landmark decision didn’t just clear our client’s name—it reaffirmed that prosecutors must charge the right crime, within the right timeframe, and with the right evidence. It’s a powerful example of how legal clarity and a strong appellate team can restore justice.

Key Facts

3 convictions reversed: Sixth Circuit ruled our client was charged under the wrong law.

0 time served: Our client remained free during the appeal and never went to prison.

$554K restitution vacated: The financial penalty was fully overturned.