Brett Favre Lawsuits: Welfare Fraud and Defamation

Brett Favre is a defendant in a civil lawsuit brought by the Mississippi Department of Human Services, which is trying to claw back roughly $8 million in federal Temporary Assistance for Needy Families money that ended up funding projects the Hall of Fame quarterback championed. The Brett Favre welfare lawsuit is a civil action, not a criminal case; Favre has not been charged with a crime, and he denies knowing the funds came from a program meant to help poor families. The case remains active in Hinds County Circuit Court as of mid-2026, and Favre is simultaneously suing the state auditor who exposed the scandal for defamation.¹

What Mississippi Says Favre Received

The MDHS suit, filed in 2022 against more than three dozen defendants, relies on the Uniform Voidable Transactions Act. It alleges Favre received or orchestrated fraudulent transfers of welfare money from which he personally benefited. The state’s claims against him break down into three streams.

$1.1 Million in Speaking Fees

Nancy New’s nonprofit, the Mississippi Community Education Center, paid Favre Enterprises $500,000 in December 2017 and $600,000 in June 2018, ostensibly for motivational speeches and radio advertisements. State Auditor Shad White said auditors found Favre never delivered the speeches and was not present at the events.² Text messages released through the litigation suggest the contracts may have been a vehicle to route additional funding toward a volleyball project at the University of Southern Mississippi.³

Favre repaid the $1.1 million principal in two installments in 2020 and 2021.⁴ The state auditor contends he still owes $729,790 in statutory interest, which remains unpaid as of early 2024.⁵

$5 Million for a Volleyball Facility

At least $5 million in TANF funds went toward building a volleyball arena at Southern Mississippi, where Favre’s daughter played on the team. According to the MDHS lawsuit, Favre had originally made a “handshake deal” to personally guarantee the construction costs but turned to public funding when he could not raise enough through private donations.⁶

Because federal rules prohibit TANF money from paying for construction, the transaction was structured as a lease: the USM Athletic Foundation leased athletic facilities to New’s nonprofit for $5 million, ostensibly for programming space, while the money actually funded the building of what was called a “Wellness Center.” New’s nonprofit paid $2.5 million in November 2017 and another $2.5 million the following month. Text messages published through the litigation show that former Governor Phil Bryant helped facilitate the arrangement, advising Favre to have Nancy New reword the funding proposal so it would pass review.³

$2.1 Million to a Pharmaceutical Startup

Favre was the largest individual outside investor in Prevacus, a Florida-based startup developing a nasal spray to treat concussions. By December 2018 he held $250,000 in company stock and sat on its sports advisory board.⁷ That month Favre lobbied Bryant to help secure state funding, writing, “It’s 3rd and long and we need you to make it happen!!”⁸

In January 2019, Prevacus CEO Jake VanLandingham pitched the drug at Favre’s home in a meeting attended by Nancy New, Zach New, John Davis, and Ted DiBiase Jr. Within weeks, New’s nonprofit signed a $1.7 million contract with Prevacus, and the first $750,000 payment went out a day before the contract was finalized. Prevacus ultimately received about $2.1 million in welfare funds.⁸ After the deal closed, Favre texted Bryant: “We couldn’t be more happy about the funding from the State of MS.” Asked whether the media might discover the source, Favre’s attorney explained Favre “just didn’t need the publicity” and thought “it would look bad to be getting money from a program.”⁹ VanLandingham later pleaded guilty to federal wire fraud, admitting he had used some of the money for personal debts and gambling rather than drug development.¹⁰

Where the Case Stands

Favre tried to get out of the lawsuit early. His attorneys argued that the state’s legal theory was so broad it would sweep in “anyone” who “could in any way be deemed to have reaped some undefined benefit from a transfer,” and that remaining in the suit caused him “substantial and irreparable harm.”¹¹ Hinds County Circuit Judge Faye Peterson denied the motion to dismiss in April 2023, and in August 2023 a three-justice panel of the Mississippi Supreme Court denied Favre’s petition in a one-page order by Associate Justice James D. Maxwell II, keeping him in the case.¹²

A separate procedural fight erupted in 2024 when Judge Peterson sanctioned Favre’s New York-based attorney, Daniel Koevary, for filing motions the judge said were an attempt to “manufacture discord.” She removed him from the courtroom, barred him from filing further documents, and ordered him to pay costs.⁴ On June 4, 2026, the Mississippi Supreme Court unanimously vacated those sanctions, ruling that Koevary had been denied due process because he received no notice and no chance to respond before the penalties were imposed. The matter was sent back to Judge Peterson.¹³

Favre remains represented by other attorneys, and the case continues in Hinds County Circuit Court with no trial date publicly set.

What Favre Says in His Defense

Favre has consistently maintained he did not know the money flowing into his projects was federal welfare money. His attorney Bud Holmes has said Favre “didn’t understand where the grants came from” and “had no idea” they were TANF dollars.⁹ When the auditor first flagged the speaking payments in 2020, White himself noted there were no records showing Favre knew the money’s origin.²

On the auditor’s assertion that the speeches never happened, Favre pushed back publicly in 2022: “I would never knowingly take funds meant to help our neighbors in need, but for Shad White to continue to push out this lie that the money was for no-show events is something I cannot stay silent about.”¹⁴ His attorney Damon Stevenson has framed the ongoing fight in economic terms, saying Favre’s “name has economic benefits associated with it” and that he is working to protect his ability to earn a living from his reputation.⁴

Criminal Charges: What Favre Does Not Face

Favre has not been charged with a crime in connection with the welfare scandal, and the window for some charges may already be shut. Legal experts told the Mississippi Free Press in mid-2024 that the five-year statute of limitations for certain fund distributions appeared to have expired in late 2022, though some noted that if prosecutors could tie earlier conduct to a more recent overt act within a conspiracy, older actions might still be reachable.¹⁵ No charges have materialized. The MDHS action against him is a civil recovery suit, and any liability would be financial rather than criminal.

Favre’s Own Defamation Lawsuits

Alongside defending the state’s suit, Favre has filed three defamation cases against people he says falsely accused him of stealing welfare money. The results so far are mixed.

Favre v. Shad White

Favre sued Auditor Shad White over roughly 15 statements White made to media outlets and in his 2024 book, Mississippi Swindle: Brett Favre and the Welfare Scandal that Shocked America. White sought dismissal, arguing his comments were protected speech made in his official capacity. Hinds County Circuit Judge Debra Gibbs determined the suit targeted White in his personal capacity and denied two motions to dismiss.¹⁶ Attorney General Lynn Fitch’s office withdrew from representing White, citing a conflict of interest and concluding that the content of White’s book fell outside the scope of his official duties. In May 2025, the Mississippi Supreme Court denied White’s appeal to dismiss, allowing the case to proceed toward trial.¹⁷ White’s office responded that “the facts of this case have not changed” and vowed to continue defending against what it called a “ridiculous and frivolous lawsuit.”¹⁸ No trial date has been publicly announced.

Favre v. Shannon Sharpe

Favre sued NFL commentator Shannon Sharpe after Sharpe called him a thief who stole from “the underserved” on Skip and Shannon: Undisputed in 2022. A federal district judge dismissed the case in November 2023, ruling that Sharpe’s comments were “constitutionally protected rhetorical hyperbole using loose, figurative language” that no reasonable viewer would take as a literal accusation of criminal larceny. In September 2024, a unanimous panel of the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed the dismissal, with Judge Leslie Southwick writing that Sharpe’s statements were “better viewed as strongly stated opinions based on publicly known facts.”¹⁹

Favre v. Pat McAfee

A third defamation suit, filed against sports media personality Pat McAfee for calling Favre a “thief” who was “stealing from poor people in Mississippi,” was withdrawn in May 2023 after McAfee clarified on air that his comments were made in a comedic style and based solely on public allegations, not personal knowledge. No settlement was paid.²⁰

1
PBS NewsHour. Welfare Misuse Scandal Highlights Wealth Divide in Mississippi
2
ESPN. Brett Favre to Repay $1.1 Million Given for Speeches That Were Not Made
3
Mississippi Today. Phil Bryant, Brett Favre, and Welfare
4
WAPT. Judge Removes One of Brett Favre’s Lawyers in Civil Case Over Misspent Welfare Money
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Yahoo Sports. Mississippi State Auditor Still Seeking Nearly $730,000 From Brett Favre in Welfare Funds Scandal
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Athletic Business. Ex-USM President: Favre Agreed to Pay for Entire Volleyball Facility Project
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Mississippi Free Press. Bryant Texts: Favre Partner Sought Trump’s Help Funding Drug Company Named in TANF Scandal
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CBS News. Brett Favre, Mississippi Pharmaceutical Company Prevacus, and State Welfare Funds
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NBC News. Brett Favre Texts Show Role in Mississippi Welfare Scandal
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Mississippi Today. Jake Vanlandingham Guilty Plea in Welfare Scandal
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Mississippi Today. Supreme Court Blocks Brett Favre’s Escape From Welfare Fraud Lawsuit
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Front Office Sports. Mississippi Supreme Court Denies Brett Favre’s Appeal
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Clarion Ledger. MS Supreme Court Vacates Favre Lawyer Sanctions in Welfare Fraud Case
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NBC News. Nation’s Poorest State Used Welfare Money to Pay Brett Favre for Speeches He Never Gave
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Mississippi Free Press. The Window to Charge Brett Favre in the Mississippi Welfare Case Is Closing
16
Magnolia Tribune. Mississippi Supreme Court Allows Favre’s Defamation Lawsuit Against Auditor White to Continue
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WLOX. Mississippi Supreme Court Rejects Auditor’s Appeal to Dismiss Brett Favre’s Defamation Suit
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Mississippi Free Press. Brett Favre’s Defamation Lawsuit Against State Auditor Over Welfare Scandal Will Proceed, Court Says
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ESPN. Appeals Court Tosses Brett Favre Lawsuit Against Shannon Sharpe
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CNN. Brett Favre, Pat McAfee Litigation Dropped