Chrisleys Sue Former Lawyers Over Tax Case Mismanagement
Reality TV personalities Todd and Julie Chrisley are taking legal action against their former defense attorneys. They’ve filed a lawsuit claiming critical mistakes in their defense contributed to the mishandling of their well-known tax evasion case, which ultimately led to their imprisonment.
On June 5, the couple lodged a $25 million lawsuit alleging legal malpractice and breach of contract against the law firm Balch & Bingham LLP and attorney Chris Anulewicz, as reported in legal documents.
The Chrisleys were indicted on fraud charges back in 2019 after officials from the Georgia Department of Revenue searched their property. Despite their consistent denials of wrongdoing, a district court later deemed the search unlawful.
In June 2022, they were found guilty of conspiring to defraud community banks in the Atlanta area out of more than $30 million, alongside a scheme that involved evading taxes through bogus loans.
Todd originally received a 12-year prison sentence, while Julie was given seven years. They began their federal sentences on January 17, 2023. Though their sentences were later reduced, they were fully pardoned by President Donald Trump on May 27, 2025, after spending over two years behind bars.
In the lawsuit, the Chrisleys argue that Anulewicz didn’t adequately attempt to block key evidence, such as emails and financial documents that federal agents acquired due to the illegal search. They assert that this evidence was central to the government’s case against them.
“A lawyer with actual criminal defense competence, supervised by a firm that took its professional obligations seriously, would never have let this happen,” the lawsuit states. “The result of Defendants’ conduct was a catastrophic, unforced error that sent two people to federal prison for crimes they would never have been convicted of had their lawyers done their jobs.”
The Chrisleys claim this legal battle has cost them “more than $25 million in income” and has harmed their reputations and family time.
“This was not a close call on a hard legal question. It was a failure of basic competence that Balch, as an institution, allowed to happen,” they stress.
They are seeking at least $25 million in damages, plus interest at the highest legal rate, along with legal fees, and they want a jury trial comprising 12 members.
Additonally, Todd and Julie contend that the firm and Anulewicz were not adequately qualified for their case but chose to take it, drawn in by the publicity and potential profit tied to the Chrisley name.
