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Todd Chrisley and his wife, Julie Chrisley, filed a $25 million lawsuit against their former defense attorneys on Monday.
Months after a pardon from President Donald Trump, 79, released them from prison, where they each served time after being convicted of fraud and tax evasion in 2022, Todd, 57, and Julie, 53, are blaming lawyer Christopher Anulewicz and law firm Balch & Bingham for losing their case, claiming the attorneys were not capable of defending them in “one of the most consequential federal criminal prosecutions in the country.”
“[Christopher Anulewicz] had no meaningful criminal defense experience [and took the case for] publicity, and the kind of high-profile notoriety that brings in business,” their lawsuit alleged, via an NBC News report on June 9.
As fans will recall, Todd and Julie were targeted with an investigation by the Georgia Revenue Department in 2017, which resulted in the couple being accused of defrauding banks out of $36 million. Years later, after being found guilty, Todd was sentenced to 12 years behind bars, and Julie was sentenced to seven.
Although Todd and Julie insisted that a search of their warehouse was “illegal,” their attorney allegedly waited too long to file a motion to “suppress the derivative evidence” obtained, leading to “catastrophic” consequences.
“They served time in federal prison. They were separated from each other and from their children. They lost their television show and endorsement deals, costing them more than $25 million in income. Their reputations were destroyed,” the lawsuit stated. “A lawyer with actual criminal defense competence, supervised by a firm that took its professional obligations seriously, would never have let this happen.”
Todd and Julie are seeking $25 million in compensation, plus attorneys’ fees.
Following the filing of the Chrisleys’ lawsuit, Patrick O’Connor, a lawyer representing Christopher, said he had not yet been served.
“We are unable to comment on an unserved, apparently pending federal lawsuit,” he said in a statement.
Christopher had nearly 30 years of experience in civil and criminal business cases, and he was named as one of “The Best Lawyers in America” in 2021 and as one of “Georgia’s Super Lawyers” from 2014 to 2026.
Doug Schneider, a spokesperson for Balch & Bingham, added, “This complaint will be vigorously defended; however, we are not in a position to comment further on a pending lawsuit.”