Education
- Syracuse University College of Law (J.D., 2020, Moot Court Honor Society)
- Long Island University Post (B.A., 2017, Honors College & Merit Fellowship)
Honors
- CALI Award (highest grade in class), Legal Writing in Criminal Litigation
- CALI Award (highest grade in class), Legal Writing
- CALI Award (highest grade in class), Commercial Real Estate
- CALI Award (highest grade in class), Real Estate Transactions
Admissions
- North Carolina
- U.S. District Court, Western District of North Carolina
- U.S. District Court, Middle District of North Carolina
- U.S. Court of Appeals, Second Circuit
- U.S. Court of Appeals, Third Circuit
- U.S. Court of Appeals, Fourth Circuit
Organizations
- National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers
- American Bar Association
Representative Matters
- Successfully persuaded federal judge to dismiss witness tampering charge mid-trial. Then secured not guilty verdicts on seven counts.
- Currently representing client charged with federal health care fraud and illegal kickbacks in an alleged $1bn fraud scheme related to amniotic skin grafts / wound care.
- Represented a political campaign treasurer in a federal grand jury investigation concerning campaign finance crimes. U.S. Attorney’s Office declined charges.
- Represented a public official under federal investigation for bribery and honest services fraud. U.S. Attorney’s Office declined charges.
- Represented a tax preparer investigated by the U.S. Secret Service for paycheck protection program (PPP) loan fraud. U.S. Attorney declined charges.
- In four separate and unrelated cases, secured the complete dismissal of attempted murder indictments in the last 2.5 years. North Carolina v. C.D., (2026); North Carolina v. D.C., (2024); North Carolina v. B.W., (2024); North Carolina v. J.M., (2023).
- In a federal capital case, wrote a winning brief compelling the release of a client from solitary confinement.
- Wrote a winning motion for compassionate release, securing the early release of a federal prisoner. United States v. Shope, (S.D. Ohio 2020).
- Wrote a winning petition for mandamus to compel a sitting state court judge to release public records.
- In a statutory interpretation case on an issue of first impression, lead author of a winning brief filed in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, resulting in a published opinion. United States v. Saladino, 7 F.4th 120 (2d Cir. 2021).
- Lead author of an emergency motion filed in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit related to the federal Bail Reform Act. United States v. Davis, No. 20-1347 (Jul. 2, 2020) (ordering that defendant be “promptly offered the option of being immediately moved to a single-bunk cell within the Metropolitan Correctional Center.”).
John J. Dowling III
Federal Attorney
Mr. Dowling represents clients charged with white-collar crimes in state and federal courts across the country. He regularly interacts with federal law enforcement agencies, including the FBI, DEA, DOJ, Homeland Security, and the US Secret Service. His practice is based in Charlotte, North Carolina, and he has tried cases, represented clients, or argued federal appeals in New York, Pennsylvania, North Carolina, Miami, Kentucky, California, and more.
His clientele includes a range of professionals, including business owners, doctors, law enforcement officers, lawyers, political personnel, engineers, tax preparers, bankers, as well as a judge.
By and large, Mr. Dowling represents individuals charged with (or under investigation for) fraud- related offenses, especially wire, mail, and bank fraud, as well as bribery, money laundering, identity theft, embezzlement, and conspiracy.
A large fraction of Mr. Dowling’s practice also involves representing physicians, pharmacists, and other licensed medical professionals in federal court charged with violations of the federal Controlled Substances Act and federal health care fraud. In a recent case, Mr. Dowling, along with two colleagues, represented a physician at trial in federal court in New York and assisted in obtaining verdicts of not guilty on nine felony counts—including three witness tampering counts. Mr. Dowling’s opening statement in that case was covered in Newsday—Long Island’s largest print newspaper.
Also recently, Mr. Dowling represented a government employee under investigation by the FBI and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for bribery and honest services fraud. Mr. Dowling persuaded the government to decline charges altogether. In another case, he represented a tax preparer under investigation by the U.S. Attorney’s Office and the U.S. Secret Service for Paycheck Protection Program (PPP loan) fraud involving nearly $500,000. Again, he persuaded the government to decline charges altogether. In addition, recently, in a case investigated by U.S. Homeland Security, he defended at trial a senior vice president at Wells Fargo indicted for an organized crime related offense.
Mr. Dowling earned his law degree from Syracuse University College of Law where he served as chairman of the disciplinary committee for the Moot Court Honor Society. He has earned two awards for legal writing and his essays on federal sentencing have been published in criminal defense newsletters.
In law school, he spent two years interning at the Federal Public Defender’s Office for the Northern District of New York, helping those charged with a range of federal offenses including bribery, wire, bank, and social security fraud, international money laundering, death threats against public officials, identity theft, drug, and firearms offenses, and a capital punishment case.
