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\u2019s Office of the Northern District of Florida.<\/p>\n
The U.S. Attorney\u2019s 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. <\/p>\n
Howard reportedly committed wire fraud and money laundering through a racketeering enterprise.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn all, Howard fraudulently obtained more than $12 million from his victims,\u201d said a statement from the U.S. Attorney\u2019s Office of the Northern District of Florida.<\/p>\n
Howard pleaded guilty<\/a> to racketeering in August 2023 and was sentenced<\/a> to 14 years three months later.<\/p>\n More on crime in our area:<\/p>\n According to the U.S. Attorney\u2019s Office, Howard\u2019s appeal questioned the \u201ctotal loss attributable to his fraud scheme.\u201d They continued that the briefs by the U.S. Attorney\u2019s Office \u201cwell-rebutted\u201d their claims. <\/p>\n \u201cJudges on the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals fully agreed with the positions of the U.S. Attorney\u2019s Office, and affirmed the conviction and sentence in an unpublished opinion without requiring oral argument,\u201d the U.S. Attorney\u2019s Office said. <\/p>\n 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).<\/p>\n 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.<\/p>\n To keep up with the latest news as it develops, follow WCTV on Facebook<\/a>, Instagram<\/a>, YouTube<\/a>, Nextdoor<\/a> <\/a>and X<\/a> (Twitter<\/a>).<\/p>\n Have a news tip or see an error? Write to us here<\/a>. Please include the article\u2019s headline in your message.<\/p>\n Be the first to see all the biggest headlines by downloading the WCTV News app. Click here<\/a> to get started.<\/p>\n Copyright 2026 WCTV. All rights reserved.<\/p>\n