Attorneys

Scott C. Cox

SCOTT C. COX is considered one of Kentucky’s premier criminal defense attorneys. “Lawyer is ‘go to’ guy in big cases.” Louisville Courier-Journal – November 27, 2011. He has been elected a Fellow of the prestigious American College of Trial Lawyers and his name can be found in the influential registry The Best Lawyers in America.

Scott served as counsel to the United States Senate Judiciary Committee for a year after law school and then joined the United States Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Kentucky in 1987.  As an Assistant United States Attorney, Scott handled high-profile public corruption and white collar fraud prosecutions, practiced every category of federal criminal law, litigated civil fraud and whistleblower actions, and received national attention when he won the conviction of murderer Mel Ignatow following Ignatow’s acquittal in state court. (Hill, Bob. Double Jeopardy. William Morrow & Co., 1995).

Scott entered private practice in 1994, and formed the law firm of Cox & Mazzoli PLLC in 2001 with his former colleague at the United States Attorney’s Office, Michael R. Mazzoli. In his career as a defense attorney, Scott has handled every type of criminal case, including high-stakes fraud, narcotics, money laundering, and tax evasion matters, has practiced in every division of state and federal court throughout Kentucky, and has appeared in federal courts across the United States, including the Southern District of New York, Florida, Indiana, and Tennessee.  

Scott’s prominent cases include United States v. Greenwell, 3:17-CR-0006-TBR, where he won an acquittal in federal court for a sheriff charged with passing wiretap information to the target of an investigation. United States v. Heath, in which Scott won reversal of a conviction on Fourth Amendment grounds (259 F.3d 522 (6th Cir. 2001)); United States v. Sadolsky, where he set national precedent for treating gambling addiction as a ground for reducing a federal defendant’s sentence (234 F.3d 938 (6th Cir. 2000)); and United States v. Payne, in which he secured the reversal of a conviction on the grounds that parole officers illegally searched the client’s property (181 F.3d 781 (6th Cir. 1999)). In one notable case, Scott won a judgment acquitting his client and the trial court then ordered the United States government to pay the client’s attorney fees (144 F.Supp.2d 769 and187 F.Supp.2d 738 (W.D.Ky. 2001)).  

Scott is a fellow of the American College of Trial Lawyers, the most prestigious honor a trial attorney can receive in the United States.  He is also a member of the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers (NACDL). He has been President of the Kentucky Chapter of the Federal Bar Association and a member of the Board of Directors of the Federal Public Defender for the Western District of Kentucky. He was appointed by a Democratic Governor to serve as Vice Chairman of the Kentucky Registry of Election Finance (1999-2001). After he was made Chairman of the Louisville Arena Authority (KFC YUM! Center) by appointment of a Republican Governor, Scott led the successful effort to refinance $377 million in municipal bonds and improved the securities’ quality from junk bond status to investment grade. He served for seven years in the United States Army Reserve and Kentucky National Guard, rising to the rank of Captain.

Michael R. Mazzoli

Education: University of Louisville, J.D., 1992, University of Notre Dame, B.A., 1983

Admitted: 1992, Kentucky; 1994, U.S. District Court, Western District of Kentucky; 1997, U.S. Court of Appeals, 6th Circuit; 1999, U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Kentucky, U.S. District Court, Southern District of Indiana; 2001, U.S. Court of Appeals, 7th Circuit and U.S. Court of Federal Claims; 2022, U.S. District Court, Middle District of Tennessee

Memberships: Kentucky Bar Association; Louis D. Brandeis American Inn of Court (Barrister, 1999-2001); Kentucky Academy of Trial Attorneys.

Languages: Italian

Biography: Law Clerk, U.S. District Judge John G. Heyburn II, Western District of Kentucky, 1992-1994. Chairman, Board of Directors, Federal Public Defender for Western District of Kentucky. Assistant U.S. Attorney, 1994-1999. Member, Board of Directors, Kentucky YMCA 2006, 2009, 2012, 2015, and 2018.

Mike was a member of the United States Sentencing Commission’s Practitioner’s Advisory Group, a panel of seventeen attorneys from around the United States who are chosen to advise the Sentencing Commission on such matters as priorities for sentencing reform and proposed amendments to the Sentencing Guidelines. Mike served a three-year term (2009-2012) as one of three at-large members on the committee.

From 2005-2021, Mike was the head of the Criminal Justice Act Attorneys Panel, a group of over one hundred federal criminal defense attorneys in the Western District of Kentucky who accept appointments to defend indigent clients in federal court. As Panel Representative, Mike regularly provided updates about changes in criminal law, local and national legal education seminars, good sources of case law and analytical information, and details about billing rates and payment processing for appointed attorneys. Mike also helped manage the Panel, served as liaison to the federal Judges, and represented the Western District of Kentucky’s attorneys at the annual national conference of Panel Representatives. Mike was named to lead the panel in 2005 and was re-appointed to serve another four-year term in 2009.

Mike is the President and Chairman of the Board of Directors for the Federal Community Defender’s Office, the agency that serves as the “public defender” for persons accused of federal crimes in the Western District of Kentucky. As Board member, Mike helps manage the office’s business affairs and consults on other matters as appropriate. Mike was named to the Board in 2002, and reappointed by the Western District of Kentucky Judges for successive three-year terms in 2006, 2009, 2012, 2018, and 2021.

Mike was selected to serve on the Advisory Committee on Rules of the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit commencing April 1, 2015. Mike provides the Sixth Circuit with the benefit of his advice and recommendations on behalf of the practicing bar with regard to the Sixth Circuit’s local rules and internal operation procedures. Mike was recommended for service on this committee by one or more judges serving on the Sixth Circuit based on his experience in federal practice, including practice Before the Sixth Circuit.