THE LEGAL INTELLIGENCER: John Estey, an ex-chief of staff to former Gov. Ed Rendell and former Ballard Spahr partner, has been charged with using a lobbying firm as a pass-through for campaign donations to state politicians, the result of an undercover FBI investigation into lobbying of the Pennsylvania legislature.
Estey worked in the Rendell administration from 2003 to 2007. The scheme is alleged to have occurred from April to June 2011, while he was a partner and co-chair of the government affairs and regulatory group at Ballard Spahr in Philadelphia. He became general counsel of the Hershey Trust Co. in October of that year. Ballard Spahr’s general counsel, William Slaughter, declined to comment.
According to the criminal information filed April 29, Estey was charged with wire fraud relating to his acceptance of $20,000 in campaign contributions to secretly pay members of the General Assembly in order to influence legislation… (more)
