George Toby Dilworth

Practice Areas

Drawing on over 30 years of trial work and federal government experience, Toby Dilworth represents individuals and businesses in complex criminal and civil litigation and investigations.

In his civil practice, Toby has represented businesses and business owners in disputes about contracts, corporate governance, fiduciary duties, and trade secrets.

Toby brings meaningful insights and skills to clients facing investigation of criminal offenses in state and federal courts. While a federal prosecutor, Toby received the U.S. Department of Justice’s Director’s Award for sustained superior performance. He successfully prosecuted the second case in the nation to go to trial under the Economic Espionage Act; the defendants were convicted of stealing trade secrets from a biotechnology firm. He also prosecuted a case arising from a conspiracy to smuggle an avian influenza virus into the U.S., mail and wire fraud cases, tax evasion cases, and a case involving the laundering of millions of dollars derived by an interstate prostitution ring. In private practice, Toby achieved the dismissal of federal Clean Water Act and conspiracy charges against his client in federal court in Michigan and, after the trial in state court in Maine, obtained the acquittal of a client charged with a $1.6 million securities fraud.

Highly regarded by his peers for his diligent representation, lawyers and law firms have turned to Toby for representation in professional malpractice and legal ethics cases. He has successfully represented large firms, small firms, and individual lawyers before the Maine Board of Overseers as well as malpractice actions. The Board of Bar Overseers has retained Toby to testify on professional ethics and standards of care.

Toby has served as an adjunct faculty member at the University of Maine School of Law, teaching courses on trial practice and computer crimes, and has lectured at seminars on intellectual property thefts, computer crimes, internal investigations, and trial advocacy.

Work Highlights

He has achieved notable and varied successes in the courtroom and arbitration. Recent representative matters include:

-Prevailed in an appeal to the Maine Supreme Judicial Court that established new law regarding Maine’s Anti-SLAPP statute.

-Following a six-day bench trial in 2020, the Court found in favor of Toby’s client, the co-owner of a large family business. The Court concluded that the opposing party had breached his fiduciary duties and ordered him to sell his shares in the business to Toby’s client at a stipulated price.

-In 2019, tried and obtained a judgment for his clients arising from a dispute about family trusts and prevailed on the opposing party’s appeal to the Maine Supreme Judicial Court in 2020.

- In 2020, won an arbitration award worth $2.5 million for his client arising from a dispute relating to the proceeds from the sale of a housing development in Portland.

-Obtained a $1.7 million award in arbitration for an employee in a dispute with his former employer.