Ted Poulos has over 25 years of experience as a trial lawyer, focusing his practice on federal white-collar criminal defense matters and complex business litigation. He has tried dozens of criminal and civil cases in federal and state courts around the country. As a former Assistant United States Attorney, Mr. Poulos brings impeccable, seasoned judgment and investigative skills to each client, enabling him to identify the key issues, uncover and recognize the import and effect of each piece of evidence, and to properly assess the strengths and weaknesses of any case, civil or criminal, regardless of its complexity.

Mr. Poulos has been consistently recognized in numerous publications, such as Chambers & Partners, Illinois Super Lawyers and many others as being one of the most highly skilled and highly regarded white-collar criminal defense attorneys in the Midwest. His peers have given Mr. Poulos an AV rating in Martindale-Hubble, the highest rating possible. His success and reputation has led clients – whether witnesses, subjects or targets -- to count on Ted in almost every major high profile case in the past twenty years, including the investigations and prosecutions of relating to former Illinois Governors George Ryan and Rod Blagojevich, the BP Deepwater Horizon oil spill, the recent prosecutions of executives and physicians at Sacred Heart Hospital, the collapse of Sentinel Management Group, the former CFO of Boeing, and numerous public officials.  

Indeed, Mr. Poulos recently obtained an acquittal on behalf of his client in U.S. v. Novak, et al., 13 CR 312 (N.D. Ill.).  Mr. Poulos defended a physician with contracts at Sacred Heart Hospital who was charged under the Anti-kickback statute.  Mr. Poulos effectively demonstrated at trial that the doctor never referred patients to the hospital in exchange for payments under any contracts, obtaining a not guilty verdict on all counts.  As reported by the Chicago Tribune, Mr. Poulos's victory was the first setback in the government's prosecution of doctors and hospital administrators from Sacred Heart Hospital.

Mr. Poulos handles all aspects of federal and state criminal prosecutions, representing witnesses, targets, and defendants from the investigative phase through trial, and, if necessary, sentencing and appeals. Ted has extensive experience counseling corporations and closely-held businesses, municipalities, and labor unions and assisting in-house counsel and management in conducting internal investigations and responding to governmental investigations.

His clients include high-level corporate executives, physicians, lawyers, small and mid-size businesses and their owners, labor leaders and unions, and public officials, among others, in investigations and prosecutions concerning public corruption, securities fraud, bank fraud, mail and wire fraud, the Medicare/Medicaid Anti-Kickback Statute and health care fraud, defense contractor fraud, environmental offenses, price fixing and bid rigging, perjury, bribery and tax offenses. In 2014, Ted represented the lead defendant in a case the U.S. Attorney’s Office described as the largest financial fraud ever indicted in the Northern District of Illinois.

Mr. Poulos has also represented and defended clients involved in investigations and enforcement actions before the SEC and CFTC, as well as the FDA and FCC. In addition, he represented law firms and attorneys in matters before the Illinois Attorney Registration and Disciplinary Commission.

Prior to joining the Cotsirilos Firm, Mr. Poulos served as an Assistant U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois from 1987 to 1992. He is one of a mere handful of attorneys ever to be hired by the U.S. Attorney’s Office directly out of law school. Mr. Poulos immediately distinguished himself as a federal prosecutor, earning several Special Achievement Awards from the U.S. Attorney and also being honored with the Department of Justice Director's Award for Superior Service as an Assistant U.S. Attorney.