A judge in Mississippi has made a decision to remove one of the attorneys representing retired NFL player Brett Favre in a civil lawsuit brought by the Mississippi Department of Human Services in 2022. The lawsuit aims to recover welfare funds that were intended to help impoverished residents but were redirected to projects backed by affluent individuals and influential figures. Despite this legal development, Favre still has other legal representation in the case, which includes over three dozen defendants.
The ruling from Hinds County Circuit Judge Faye Peterson stated that one of Favre’s New York-based lawyers, Daniel Koevary, had violated Mississippi civil court rules by persistently requesting hearings on matters outside the court’s jurisdiction, leading Peterson to view this behavior as an effort to stir up conflict.
The Associated Press reached out to Koevary for a response to the judge’s decision, but there was no immediate comment provided. In 2020, Mississippi Auditor Shad White disclosed that Favre had received $1.1 million in speaking fees from a non-profit organization, an amount deemed improper, as the money had been sourced from welfare funds approved by the Mississippi Department of Human Services for a volleyball arena project at the University of Southern Mississippi.
White shared that Favre had reimbursed the state with $500,000 in May 2020 and an additional $600,000 in October 2021. However, a court filing in February indicated that Favre still owed $729,790 due to accrued interest on the original amount owed. Despite these financial implications, Favre has not been criminally charged in connection with the case. Former Mississippi Department of Human Services director John Davis and others have pleaded guilty to misusing funds allocated for the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program, revealing more than $77 million in welfare funds misappropriated from 2016 to 2019, which included expenses such as $160,000 for a former pro wrestler’s drug rehabilitation and funds for air travel and accommodations for Davis himself during his tenure as department head.