Courts, In-House Counsel

Former Moody's General Counsel Gets Prison Time For Failing To File Taxes

Don't forget the government's cut!

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Empty prison cell jailMaking a lot of money comes with some real obligations. No — not the ones Peter Singer lays out in Famine, Affluence, and Morality — the ones that really matter, like making sure the government gets a cut of your cash! Paying taxes and voting may both be civic duties, but deciding not file your taxes for a couple of years will get you locked up before not voting will. One very successful lawyer had to learn that the hard way. Reuters has coverage:

A former longtime general counsel to Moody’s was sentenced by a New Jersey federal judge on Thursday to 8 months in prison for willfully failing to file personal federal income tax returns.

Federal prosecutors said John Goggins earned $54 million between 2018 and 2021 and failed to file federal income taxes during those years. Goggins stepped down as Moody’s senior vice president and general counsel last fall.

A spokesperson for Mr. Goggins had this to say:

“Mr. Goggins deeply regrets and has accepted full responsibility for his failure to file his tax returns. He is grateful to the Court for considering the comprehensive measures of accountability and restitution he has taken in connection with his misdemeanor offenses. He looks forward to putting this matter behind him and will be timely filing all tax returns going forward.”

Remember, readers at home, if the IRS can get Capone, they can get you! The $3.1M in restitution was a mitigating factor in Goggins’s sentencing, but he’d have likely been better off if he just paid what he owed before it got to this point. Don’t let his punishment be yours too; file your damned taxes!

Moody’s Former Top Lawyer Gets 8-Month Sentence In Personal Tax Case [Reuters]

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Chris Williams became a social media manager and assistant editor for Above the Law in June 2021. Prior to joining the staff, he moonlighted as a minor Memelord™ in the Facebook group Law School Memes for Edgy T14s.  He endured Missouri long enough to graduate from Washington University in St. Louis School of Law. He is a former boatbuilder who cannot swim, a published author on critical race theory, philosophy, and humor, and has a love for cycling that occasionally annoys his peers. You can reach him by email at [email protected] and by tweet at @WritesForRent.

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