STEPHEN G. LARSON

LOS ANGELES - Stephen G. Larson founded Larson LLP in 2016 to handle high-stakes trial and appellate work. He served as a federal district judge in Los Angeles from 2000 to 2009.

In a recent rare major win in the sprawling Varsity Blues prosecutions over an alleged criminal conspiracy to sway undergraduate admissions decisions at top universities, Larson and law partner Koren L. Bell persuaded a judge to overrule a jury's conviction of his client, USC water polo coach Jovan Vavic, on fraud and bribery charges. Following a contentious multiweek trial in March 2022, the Boston jurors found Vavic guilty on counts that could have sent him to prison for up to 20 years. U.S. v. Ernst et al., 19-cr-10080 (D. Mass., filed March 5, 2019).

"We questioned whether contributions to the reported victim, USC, constituted bribes under federal law and argued that the answer is no because the money didn't go to my client," Larson said. "And so my client didn't benefit."

Earlier in the case, Larson and Bell obtained dismissal of the government's lead racketeering charge and its property fraud allegations. Responding to the defense's post-trial motions, U.S. District Judge Indira Talwani of Boston ordered a new trial for Vavic after finding that some evidence was unreliable and that prosecutors erred in their argument to jurors about the alleged bribe money.

The government has appealed the new trial order to the 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. Larson and Bell have cross-appealed, arguing that the judge should have ruled the evidence did not support a guilty verdict.

"There's a saying that big cases bring big problems," Larson said. "Here you have the U.S. attorney in Boston bringing these cases all across the country. We think the prosecution is running close to the line of affecting legislative policy. Contributions to schools by wealthy parents is nothing new. Is the use of the RICO statutes to go after parents the best way to regulate in this area?"

In another massive case, this one involving the fallout from the Jan. 6, 2021 Capitol riots, Larson represents his law partner emeritus Robert C. O'Brien, who served as former President Donald J. Trump's national security advisor. Larson prepped O'Brien for his testimony before Congress.

Larson also represents defendant Matthew Thomas Purse, an Irvine man who allegedly posed as a member of the press during the riot and is charged with disorderly conduct. U.S. v. Purse, 1:21-mj-00475 (D.C. D. Ct., filed June 28, 2021).

"We're in discussions with the government," Larson said of the Purse case. As with Varsity Blue, Larson suggested the government may have overreached. "Again, these far-flung prosecutions come with problems. The government might be better off breaking these down into smaller pieces."