https://www.wctv.tv/2026/01/23/appeal-denied-former-tallahassee-attorney-convicted-racketeering-enterprise/

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WCTV) - The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit has denied an appeal for a former Tallahassee attorney convicted of racketeering while representing former NFL players, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office of the Northern District of Florida.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office said that from 2015 to 2018, Phillip Timothy Howard, 64, used his Tallahassee law firm, Howard & Associates, P.A., to defraud NFL players, third-party litigation leaders and a university professor, among other clients.

Howard reportedly committed wire fraud and money laundering through a racketeering enterprise.

“In all, Howard fraudulently obtained more than $12 million from his victims,” said a statement from the U.S. Attorney’s Office of the Northern District of Florida.

Howard pleaded guilty to racketeering in August 2023 and was sentenced to 14 years three months later.

According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Howard’s appeal questioned the “total loss attributable to his fraud scheme.” They continued that the briefs by the U.S. Attorney’s Office “well-rebutted” their claims.

“Judges on the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals fully agreed with the positions of the U.S. Attorney’s Office, and affirmed the conviction and sentence in an unpublished opinion without requiring oral argument,” the U.S. Attorney’s Office said.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) investigated the case with help from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA).

Assistant U.S. Attorney Jordan New conducted the appeal before the Eleventh Court and the case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Justin M. Keen and former Assistant U.S. Attorney David P. Byron.