John Pierce, who represented some of the over 20 people charged in connection with the Jan. 6 Capitol riot, has mysteriously disappeared from court proceedings. Judges have appointed a conflicts counsel to review whether his representation of multiple co-defendants raises ethical concerns.
Clients of the firm include members of far-right Oath Keepers and Proud Boys groups as well as Kyle Rittenhouse, charged with murder in Kenosha last August.
Clients
Pierce has successfully represented many high-profile clients who are accused of crimes such as tax fraud, securities fraud and mail fraud; complex civil litigation cases including business torts, intellectual property disputes and whistleblower cases; as well as corporate and individual clients from industries including insurance, financial services banking energy manufacturing. As a former Federal prosecutor he has handled many complex and sensitive cases successfully.
Pierce has represented 17 out of 19 criminal defendants charged in Capitol riot cases since last January, representing members of Oath Keepers and Proud Boys extremist groups as well as a pastor who brought a group to participate in Jan 6 riots as well as his son–all accused in these riot cases.
Last week, Pierce ceased communicating with prosecutors and court staff regarding several cases he is involved with. In one, he attempted to send his associate, Ryan Marshall, in his place at an evidentiary hearing – though prosecutors warned against this arrangement as Ryan Marshall does not possess legal licensure and faces two felony cases of his own in Pennsylvania.
On Wednesday, Pierce returned to virtual court for one of his clients and informed the judge he can continue representing his client despite his physical absence from their case.
He filed a letter with several judges in the riot cases explaining he had been hospitalized in Los Angeles area hospitals for 12 days due to Covid-19 infection. According to this letter, his doctor will only clear him to return back into court on September 13th.
The Justice Department has informed several judges that Pierce may no longer be available for his riot cases, prompting prosecutors to request they pause them until Pierce returns or an appointed attorney takes over in his place. One prosecutor noted it is still uncertain how many riot cases Pierce can handle at once. He’s scheduled to appear in court later this month on an unrelated securities fraud claim where it alleges misappropriating funds raised by nonprofit organization Center for Constitutional Rights without their knowledge, who deny his actions were illegal; his lawyer has not responded yet to NPR requests for comment or information.
Cases
Pierce is a former Federal prosecutor who now specializes in complex civil and criminal litigation, having managed high-profile cases related to international trade, investment banking, intellectual property theft, corporate fraud and complex domestic commercial disputes involving international arbitration and litigation proceedings. Additionally, he has secured multimillion-dollar jury verdicts in complex matters; one was recognized by VerdictSearch as being among the highest business jury trial awards of 2008.
He offers an unmatched combination of skill and zeal as a top litigator with extensive business acumen from his time spent at Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan and Latham & Watkins as a partner.
Current work involves representing multiple clients charged in connection with the Jan. 6 Capitol Riot. Judges in two of those cases have appointed conflicts counsels to determine if Pierce’s representations of multiple co-defendants charged together present any ethical considerations; Pierce stands behind his decision to represent several co-defendants together, saying he will withdraw if conflicts issues arise.
Pierce has garnered considerable acclaim on the right for his support of causes favored by conservatives and his role defending Kyle Rittenhouse, accused of opening fire during a protest that led to January 6 riot in Kenosha Wisconsin. Unfortunately his former law firm disintegrated and now owes significant sums of money to creditors.
Pierce has an expansive civil litigation practice and has represented both foreign and domestic clients in multi-million dollar arbitrations, settlements and trial preparation. He has successfully mediated disputes regarding hedge funds, private equity investments, structured finance vehicles and real estate finance arrangements as well as insurance policies. He has represented clients in an array of international business transactions, such as mergers and acquisitions, joint ventures, licensing arrangements, technology transfers and non-disclosure agreements. Additionally, he has successfully represented clients against claims of intellectual property infringement or breach of contract as well as tried many patent cases to verdict – He is a member of both the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) and New York City Bar (NYCB).
Practice Areas
Pierce has extensive experience handling complex business disputes involving hedge funds, private equity funds, structured finance products for real estate financing transactions, intellectual property protection and insurance coverage matters for corporations and financial institutions with multi-billion dollar claims pending or being made against them. Furthermore, his practice encompasses international arbitration as well as litigation matters in attempts to enforce or resist enforcement of international arbitral awards.
Pierce first came to national attention by representing Kyle Rittenhouse, an 18-year-old charged with shooting two people during civil unrest in Kenosha, Wisconsin last year. Since then he has represented prominent conservative political figures like George Papadopoulos, Tulsi Gabbard and former Mayor Rudy Giuliani – each time with great success.
Recently, he was hired by several of the 17 Capitol riot defendants to represent them during an investigation of their participation in January 6 protests and any potential conspiracies with extremist groups like Oath Keepers and Proud Boys – cases with political overtones as well as simpler legal ones.
In these instances, he has attempted to keep politics separate from legal matters at hand and approach each case objectively, working through facts without emotion or bias – to have the best chance at reaching favorable outcomes for his clients.
Through his career, Mr. Browne has established himself as one of the country’s premier business and criminal defense lawyers. He currently serves as partner in the business litigation department of one of the country’s premier firms – Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan, and co-Global Practice Area Leader for Litigation at Latham & Watkins.
Pierce is a dedicated public servant who currently serves on the Board of Directors for the National Veterans Foundation and as a member of the Council on Foreign Relations. A graduate of Harvard Law School where he edited its Law Review publication, as well as serving in the U.S. Army M1A1 Abrams tank platoon leader during Iraq War; Pierce also achieved decorated veteran status for this service, is an accomplished singer/songwriter, having written several musicals himself; as well as being an active member of New York City Bar Association.
Contact
Pierce’s firm did not respond to our request for comment on the matter; however, in the past he encouraged clients to discuss their cases publicly – something legal experts believe can compromise chances for fair trials in cases with overwhelming evidence against defendants.
Pierce is an expert in sophisticated criminal and civil litigation and former federal prosecutor with extensive experience representing both domestic and foreign individuals and businesses in complex legal matters such as international investment fraud, commercial securities fraud, export control matters, tax and healthcare fraud investigations and whistleblower cases.
Pierce has also taken on challenging cases, such as representing a white nationalist charged in an Illinois hate crime and criminal cases involving people associated with far-right movements. Most recently, he represented Kyle Rittenhouse – an 18-year-old charged with two counts of homicide during protests in Kenosha, Wisconsin last August in response to police shooting of an unarmed black man – but this soon backfired when prosecutors questioned how Pierce handled donations meant for Rittenhouse’s defense; eventually Rittenhouse’s family fired him.
Pierce has stated his intent to represent all 17 individuals facing Capitol riot charges, regardless of any criticism he might receive. This was made abundantly clear during a virtual court hearing Wednesday for accused rioter Stephanie Baez; who informed the judge she felt “100%… no question” comfortable having Pierce represent her after her attorney was hospitalized recently.
Federal prosecutors warned in their filing that Ryan Marshall has been appearing for Pierce at court appearances without being licensed as an attorney and allege he has two pending criminal cases in Pennsylvania against him.
Regarding whether court-appointed attorney John Pierce should step in while hospitalized, prosecutors have requested to hear arguments on that point later this week and at an Sept 2 hearing for Peter Schwartz (another riot suspect).