I have 6 years experience researching and briefing Texas and Federal legal issues. My experience includes reducing legal and complex topics into layman terms, as well as writing briefs for attorney's and judges. My search engine of choice is Westlaw. Below please find a paragraph from brief I recently wrote regarding 18 USCA Sec. 1344 (Bank Fraud).
“[T]he ‘scheme to defraud’ clause ... requires that the defendant engage in ... a pattern or course of conduct designed to deceive a federally chartered or insured financial institution into releasing property, with the intent to victimize the institution by exposing it to actual or potential loss.” U.S. v. Stavroulakis, 952 F.2d 686, 694 (2nd Cir. 1992). In Rodriguez, the appellate court considered whether Mrs. Rodriguez’ act of depositing checks she received by defrauding the issuer of said checks into her bank account amounted to violation of section 1344. See U.S. v. Rodriguez, 140 F.3d 163 (2nd Cir. 1998) .The Rodriguez Court concluded that this was not a violation of section 1344 because the Gov’t was unable to prove that Rodriguez intended to victimize the bank by exposing it to an actual or potential loss. Id at 168. Moreover, this requirement “arises from the statute’s purpose of protecting the federal government’s interest, as an insurer of financial institutions, and not others who may have been fraudulently induced to write checks. Id. In light of the aforementioned case law, our client's activity is ....