{"id":"court_2cir_26-1853_dkt_16","court":"2Cir","case_no":"26-1853","doc_number":16,"sub_number":0,"doc_type":"MOTION","filed_date":null,"title":"Case: 26-1853, 08/05/2026, DktEntry: 16.1, (1 of 1) UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE SECOND CIRCUIT","summary_zh":"解除及替换辩护律师动议 —— 美国诉 Ho Wan Kwok（郭文贵 / Guo Wengui / Miles Guo）案，2Cir 26-1853 ECF #16（2026-08-05立案）。根据《刑事司法法》（CJA）指定的辩护律师 Joshua L. Dratel 提请动议，请求解除其作为郭文贵上诉律师的职务，并由纽约联邦公设辩护人机构（Federal Defenders of New York）接替。附带声明说明郭文贵于2026年6月29日被判处360个月监禁并被处8.89亿美元没收令，检方对律师回避及按 CJA 规定指定替任律师不持异议。","summary_en":"Motion to withdraw and substitute counsel — United States v. Ho Wan Kwok (Miles Guo), 2Cir 26-1853 ECF #16 (filed 2026-08-05). CJA-appointed defense attorney Joshua L. Dratel moves to be relieved as appellate counsel for Miles Guo and requests that the Federal Defenders of New York be substituted. The supporting declaration notes that Guo was sentenced on June 29, 2026, to 360 months imprisonment and $889 million in forfeiture, and states that the Government does not oppose counsel's withdrawal or replacement under the CJA plan.","body_en":"Case: 26-1853, 08/05/2026, DktEntry: 16.1, (1 of 1)\n                                         UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE SECOND CIRCUIT\n\n                      Thurgood Marshall U.S. Courthouse 40 Foley Square, New York, NY 10007 Telephone: 212-857-8500\n\n                                                              MOTION INFORMATION STATEMENT\n\nDocket Number(s): 26-1853                                                                                      Caption [use short title]\n\nMotion for: counsel to be relieved\n\nSet forth below precise, complete statement of relief sought:\n                                                                                          UNITED STATES OF AMERICA V. GUO\nfor counsel to be relieved as CJA appellate counsel,\nand have the Federal Defenders substituted as counsel.\n\nMOVING PARTY: Miles Guo                                                             OPPOSING PARTY: United States of America\n\n              Plaintiff                          Defendant\n\n              Appellant/Petitioner               Appellee/Respondent\n\nMOVING ATTORNEY: Joshua L. Dratel                          OPPOSING ATTORNEY: AUSA Ryan B. Finkel\n                         [name of attorney, with firm, address, phone number and e-mail]\nLaw Offices of Dratel & Lewis                                                         United States Attorney's Office, Southern District of New York\n29 Broadway, Ste. 1412, New York, NY 10006                                           26 Federal Plaza, 37th Floor, New York, NY 10278\n(212) 732-0707, jdratel@dratellewis.com                                              (212) 637-6612, Ryan.Finkel@usdoj.gov\n\nCourt- Judge/ Agency appealed from: The Honorable Analisa Torres, S.D.N.Y.\n\nPlease check appropriate boxes:                                                         FOR EMERGENCY MOTIONS, MOTIONS FOR STAYS AND\n                                                                                        INJUCTIONS PENDING APPEAL:\n Has movant notified opposing counsel (required by Local Rule 27.1):                     Has this request for relief been made below?          Yes No\n             Yes       No (explain):                                                     Has this relief been previously sought in this court? Yes No\n           Gov't position set forth at para 5 of defense counsel's Declaration.\n\n                                                                                         Requested return date and explanation of emergency:\n\nOpposing counsel’s position on motion:\n            Unopposed        Opposed      Don’t Know\nDoes opposing counsel intend to file a response:\n             Yes      _No       Don’t Know\n\nIs the oral argument on motion requested?                       Yes          No (requests for oral argument will not necessarily be granted)\n\nHas the appeal argument date been set?                          Yes          No If yes, enter date:\n\nSignature of Moving Attorney:\n                                                     Date: 8/5/26                         \u0003\u0003\u0003\u0003Service :    Electronic        Other [Attach proof of service]\n\nForm T-1080 (rev. 10-23)\n\nCase: 26-1853, 08/05/2026, DktEntry: 16.2, (1 of 3)\n\nUNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS\nFOR THE SECOND CIRCUIT\n------------------------------------------------------x\n                                                           Docket No. 26-1853\nUNITED STATES OF AMERICA,\n                Appellee\n                                                           DECLARATION IN SUPPORT\n                 – against –                               OF MOTION TO BE RELIEVED\n\nMILES GUO,\n                           Appellant.                      (filed electronically)\n-------------------------------------------------------x\n\n        JOSHUA L. DRATEL, pursuant to 28 U.S.C. §1746, hereby affirms under penalty of\n\nperjury:\n\n        1. I am an attorney admitted to practice before this Court since 1984, and have been\n\nappointed pursuant to the Criminal Justice Act (“CJA”) to represent Defendant-Appellant Miles\n\nGuo in the above-captioned appeal. I make this motion to be relieved as Mr. Guo’s counsel, and\n\nto substitute the Federal Defenders of New York as Mr. Guo’s appellate counsel.\n\n        2. I was appointed April 8, 2025, along with John F. Kaley, Esq., and Melinda Sarafa,\n\nEsq., in the District Court to represent Mr. Guo with respect to sentencing and related\n\nproceedings after he was convicted after trial and dismissed his retained counsel. I am counsel\n\nof record on this appeal because I filed the Notice of Appeal (Dkt 1.1).\n\n        3. Mr. Guo was sentenced June 29, 2026, to a prison term of 360 months, and was\n\nordered to forfeit $889 million (Dkt 856). The Judgment was filed July 2, 2026 (Dkt 860). Mr.\n\nGuo is currently serving his sentence at Federal Correctional Institution Schuykill.\n\n        4. I have spoken with Danny Habib, Chief of the Federal Defenders’ Appeals Unit, and\n\nhe has informed me that the Federal Defenders are willing and able to represent Mr. Guo on his\n\nappeal. The Federal Defenders represented Mr. Guo at his presentment in 2023, but were\n\nreplaced by retained counsel. However, Mr. Guo has filed for bankruptcy and qualifies for\n\nCase: 26-1853, 08/05/2026, DktEntry: 16.2, (2 of 3)\n\nappointed representation (as he did in the District Court following trial).\n\n       5. I have also been in contact with Assistant United States Attorney Ryan B. Finkel, who\n\nrequested that this motion include the government’s position stated as follows: “The\n\nGovernment does not oppose [the] motion to withdraw as counsel for Mr. Guo's appeal. We also\n\ndo not oppose the appointment of replacement counsel for Mr. Guo pursuant to the Criminal\n\nJustice Act. While the Government takes no position on who that counsel should be, it is the\n\nGovernment's position that the appointment should be made according to the Second Circuit’s\n\nestablished procedures under its CJA plan, as opposed to a substitution of counsel of Mr. Guo’s\n\nrequest.”\n\n       6. Mr. Guo has confirmed with Ms. Sarafa and me directly that he wishes to have me\n\n(and Mr. Kaley and Ms. Sarafa) relieved as counsel, and to have the Federal Defenders as\n\ncounsel for his appeal. Given the number of potential pretrial, trial, and sentencing issues\n\ninvolved, the complexity of the case (including the voluminous record of litigation and\n\ndiscovery), Mr. Kaley, Ms. Sarafa, and I are in agreement that review and representation by new\n\ncounsel would be appropriate in this case.\n\n       7. That is reinforced by the fact that we were appointed only during the sentencing\n\nphase, and for that purpose. In that context, the Federal Defenders have the capacity and\n\nresources to handle an appeal this complex, and with a record of this magnitude: the discovery\n\nconsists of 46 separate hard drives totaling 71 terabytes of data.\n\n       8. In addition, the appointment of counsel in the District Court was also affected by the\n\nnumber of attorneys on the CJA panel (particularly those with firm resources) who would be\n\nconflicted out of representation of Mr. Guo. An appeal of this magnitude would also require\n\ndevotion of significant CJA resources, which would be obviated by representation by the Federal\n\nCase: 26-1853, 08/05/2026, DktEntry: 16.2, (3 of 3)\n\nDefenders.\n\n       9. There is also precedent for appointment of the Federal Defenders for an appeal. In\n\nUnited States v. Avenatti, 19 Cr. 373 (PGG) (S.D.N.Y. 2019), the Federal Defenders substituted\n\non appeal for retained trial counsel. Likewise, the Federal Defenders were substituted on appeal\n\nin United States v. Martignoni, Docket No. 94-1187 (also a complex fraud prosecution), United\n\nStates v. Edwardo-Franco, 885 F.2d 1002 (2d Cir. 1989) (complex drug-trafficking prosecution),\n\nand United States v. Long, 917 F.2d 691 (2d Cir. 1990) (Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt\n\nOrganizations Act [“RICO”] prosecution).\n\n       10. Accordingly, it is respectfully requested that the Court relieve me as Mr. Guo’s\n\ncounsel – and, if necessary, relieve Mr. Kaley and Ms. Sarafa as well, even though they do not\n\nappear on this Court’s docket in the case – and substitute the Federal Defenders as Mr. Guo’s\n\nappellate counsel.\n\n       WHEREFORE, it is respectfully requested that the Court grant the motion to relieve me,\n\nas well as Mr. Kaley and Ms. Sarafa, as counsel for Mr. Guo on this appeal, and substitute the\n\nFederal Defenders of New York as counsel for Mr. Guo.\n\n       I declare under penalty of perjury that the foregoing is true and correct to the best of my\n\nknowledge and belief. 28 U.S.C. §1746. Executed August 5, 2026\n\n                                                       /S/ Joshua L. Dratel\n\n                                                     JOSHUA L. DRATEL","body_zh":null,"key_entities":["Guo","Sarafa","Dratel","Kaley","Finkel","Miles Guo","Torres","Analisa Torres","RICO"],"ecf_references":[{"doc_number":1,"court":"2Cir"},{"doc_number":856,"court":"CTB"},{"doc_number":860,"court":"SDNY"}],"word_count":1129,"status":"published","published_at":null,"created_at":null,"updated_at":"2026-08-17 09:56:37"}