Categories
Headline Sports Agents

Howard Kusnick Charged With Conspiracy To Commit Wire Fraud

While it seems as though the lawsuit filed by Howard A. Kusnick PA against Kellin Deglan (the #22 overall pick in the 2010 MLB Amateur Draft) is stalled (the most recent movement being Deglan filing a new motion to dismiss), Howard Kusnick has his hands full with different court proceedings.  Kusnick, a principal at Double Diamond Sports Management, which represents Lorenzo Cain, Jeremy Jeffress, and Philippe Valiquette amongst others, was charged on Friday, May 27, 2011 with one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud.  The offense is punishable by up to five years in prison, but the Broward/Palm Beach New Times reports that Kusnick is expected to plead guilty as part of an arrangement with the FBI, which will likely mean less than a full five years in prison.

The Sun Sentinel was more specific about the charges against Kusnick.  The Sentinel stated that Kusnick has been accused of providing false legal information to help Scott Rothstein trick a car dealer Ed Morse and his wife out of $57 million.  Kusnick is expected to make his first court appearance this week.

Absolutely nothing I write will compare to Bob Norman’s Sunday Post titled, Karma Catches up with Kusnick.  I wonder if any rival agents will be sending the article to Double Diamond Sports Management clients or if the MLB Players Association is paying any attention to this matter.

Update (9:50 a.m. on 6/1/11): I have been informed by Joshua Kusnick’s attorney that Joshua Kusnick is the only principal of Double Diamond Sports Management, Inc. according to the Florida Division of Corporations website and that Howard Kusnick is not now and at no time material has held such a role with the company, nor has he been an officer, director, owner or shareholder in Double Diamond Sports Management, Inc.  But Howard is listed as an advisor of Juan Carlos Subaran, was named as a principal on Double Diamond’s website (which conveniently no longer exists) according to the Broward/Palm Beach New Times, and announced the founding of his full service sports management firm, Double Diamond Sports Management in Spring 2007.

Update (6:00 p.m. 6/1/11): I have also been informed that Juan Carlos Subaran’s Wikipedia page has not been updated to reflect the fact that the Kusnicks are not currently his agents.  I have updated the post based on this knowledge.

By Darren Heitner

Darren Heitner created Sports Agent Blog as a New Year's Resolution on December 31, 2005. Originally titled, "I Want To Be A Sports Agent," the website was founded with the intention of causing Heitner to learn more about the profession that he wanted to join, meet reputable individuals in the space and force himself to stay on top of the latest news and trends.

Heitner now runs Heitner Legal, P.L.L.C., which is a law firm with many practice areas, including sports law and contract law. Heitner has represented numerous athletes and sports agents as legal counsel. He has also served as an Adjunct Professor at Indiana University Bloomington from 2011-2014, where he created and taught a course titled, Sport Agency Management, which included subjects ranging from NCAA regulations to athlete agent certification and the rules governing the profession. Heitner serves as an Adjunct Professor at the University of Florida Levin College of Law, where he teaches a Sports Law class that includes case law surrounding athlete agents and the NCAA rules.