Michael R Schneider

• I am a former biomedical scientist and client of Good, Schneider, Cormier and Fried. I specifically hired Michael Schneider to defend me against allegations of research scientific misconduct. • Long before I hired Mr. Schneider, and not knowing better, I hired (what would be) a series of inexperi...enced and ineffective attorneys to represent me. All had claimed to be experts in the defense of allegations of scientific misconduct. I would learn later that most had little-to-no experience. • Michael Schneider was the first (and only) attorney that I found to be completely transparent, professional and experienced in administrative, civil and criminal law as it pertains specifically to the defense against allegations of research misconduct. In my opinion, Mr. Schneider is not only a brilliant and honest attorney; he is a well-versed scholar on the subject of research scientific misconduct and a very decent human being – a quality that eludes many others in his profession. • Herein, what I have to say can be authenticated through a cadre of legal filings in administrative, federal, and appeals courts that began in 2007 and concluded in 2018. • To make a very-long story a bit shorter, had I hired an experienced attorney like Mr. Schneider and had I done this early in the inquiry/investigation process, I would very likely still be a working scientist. • I was accused of research misconduct while working for a public institution. During this time (ten years of litigation), administrative and federal judges would rule against me based on their belief that everything the institution produced in their “Report” to the government was accurate and factual. • It took more than ten years of FOIA requests to obtain the evidence to prove in a court of law that institutional lawyers, administrators and researchers had knowingly and intentionally “destroyed”, “manipulated”, “lost”, “misplaced”’, “deleted”, “misidentified” and “withheld” physical and electronic evidence and information that was crucial to my defense. • In my experience, in the USA you are not innocent until proven guilty – you need to prove your innocence and you need to protect yourself against unlawful and deceptive tactics that can be used (and are often used) by 'investigative' and prosecuting attorneys at all phases of scientific misconduct ‘investigations’. • Mr. Schneider kindly took me as a client after years of a botched defense by mostly inexperienced and uncaring attorneys. He took my case all the way from the administrative-to-federal-to-appellate court. My case was heard in front of the First District Court of Appeals. The one-and-only time a research scientific misconduct case has been heard at this level. • I ultimately lost my case because an administrative law judge (the governments judge) would not grant an evidentiary hearing (no original data, electronic files, ...) and then ruled against me based on “inference” and his “belief” that I was a “liar” and that spoliation, manipulation, concealment and withholding of evidence could not have occurred to this massive degree by institutional attorneys, administrators and competitors in research. • For those unfamiliar with the law (as I was), you only get one shot at getting it right (Res Judicata, ...). Once a judge rules, even if it can be proven later-on that it was an unjust ruling, and even if the accuser has “destroyed”, “manipulated”, “withheld”… evidence, the decision almost always stands. This is compounded even more by the very low-bar of “preponderance of evidence” in such misconduct hearings - a reason to get an experienced attorney like Michael Schneider involved ASAP before the misconduct allegations can be flagrantly amplified. Thanks again Michael for your constant professionalism, work ethic (your writing skills and command of the English language are unsurpassed) and your compassion for people like me that can be (and often are) taken advantage of by our justice system.

If you need a great appellate attorney, Michael Schneider is your man! I have known Atty. Schneider since 1996, when he first became aware of my situation through an associate. When I was tried and wrongfully convicted in 2005, Michael stepped into my case at my request and worked diligently to ...find justice for me. It took a few years to get through the appeals process, but he was dedicated and tenacious. I cannot say enough good things about him and his work ethic. When he appealed my case to the Supreme Judicial Court, it only took them 9 weeks (practically unheard of) to overturn my conviction and set me free! The vote was unanimous and included the full panel of Judges. All through the process, he kept me informed via regular phone calls and shared documentation. He was supportive and also straightforward with me, helping me understand the process and taking time to go over details and investigate a case that was over 20 years old, finding the facts that proved I was not guilty of this charge. He got me back to my son, and my life. I know that if it weren't for his belief in me, and his dedication to get justice, I would still be behind bars serving someone else's time. Atty. Schneider is a great lawyer, I would (and do) strongly recommend him to anyone looking for an honest, sincere and dedicated lawyer.