FLORIDA ATTORNEY’S RACKETEERING CONVICTION FOR DEFRAUDING NFL PLAYERS & OTHER CLIENTS AFFIRMED BY THE ELEVENTH CIRCUIT

TALLAHASSEE, FLORIDA – On January 7, 2026, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit affirmed the conviction and sentence of Phillip Timothy Howard, 64, of Tallahassee, Florida. Howard is serving a 14-year federal prison sentence after pleading guilty to racketeering (RICO) in 2023. United States Attorney for the Northern District of Florida John P. Heekin said, “This defendant repeatedly violated the trust placed in him by his clients, enriching himself by defrauding them of millions of dollars, and continued to try to evade accountability for his crimes even after he was found guilty. As this appellate victory makes clear, my office not only zealously advocates for criminal fraud victims at trial, but also ensures our successful prosecutions stick and criminals are held fully accountable.” Court documents reflect between December 2015 and January 2018, Howard, a Florida attorney, used his Tallahassee law firm Howard & Associates, P.A., to commit wire fraud and money laundering through a racketeering enterprise. Howard defrauded several of his clients, including National Football League players, third-party litigation lenders, and a university professor. In all, Howard fraudulently obtained more than $12 million from his victims. Howard’s appellate attacks on the validity of his prior guilty plea, the total loss attributable to his fraud scheme, and the severity of his sentence were well-rebutted in briefs filed by the U.S. Attorney’s Office defending the conviction and sentence. 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Appeals fully agreed with the positions of the U.S. Attorney’s Office, and affirmed the conviction and sentence in an unpublished opinion without requiring oral argument.