MEAWW.COM / NEWS / CELEBRITY NEWS

Erika Jayne wins $5M fraud lawsuit amid claims ex Tom Girardi wired $300K of clients' money to mistress

Jayne was earlier accused of aiding Girardi in embezzling funds meant for the families of the 189 victims of the Lion Air Flight 610 crash

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: Erika Jayne, the 51-year-old star of ‘Real Housewives of Beverly Hills,’ recently won the $5 million fraud lawsuit filed by two ex-colleagues of her 83-year-old estranged husband Thomas Girardi, Philip R Sheldon and Robert P Finn. Following this, Jayne also commented on Girardi’s legal troubles by sharing a screenshot of an LA Times article titled ‘A judge’s affair with Tom Girardi, a beachfront condo and a $300,000 wire from his firm.’

As per Page Six, Sheldon and Finn had sued Jayne in late 2020 for “aiding and abetting” Girardi in his alleged crime. Girardi was accused of embezzling funds meant for the families of the 189 victims of Lion Air Flight 610, who got killed in the Indonesia airplane disaster in October 2018. Girardi was sued by his business partners, resulting in a chapter 7 bankruptcy petition. However, Jayne’s attorney Evan C Borges confirmed to the outlet that Los Angeles Judge Richard Fruin found no evidence that Jayne was involved in “any wrongdoing.” Judge Fruin concluded his final ruling by stating, "The Court finds that there is no triable issue of material fact as to Ms Girardi having ‘actual knowledge’ of plaintiffs' claims of the existence of a fiduciary duty between plaintiffs and [Girardi and Girardi & Keese]. The Court, therefore, grants summary judgment in favor of defendant Erika [Jayne] Girardi." 

READ MORE

Garcelle Beauvais unfollows 'RHOBH' co-star Erika Jayne, declares they aren't friends anymore

Erika Jayne roasted for advising laxative to 'RHOBH' star Crystal Minkoff for her bulimia: 'Pure garbage'

Following the major win, Jayne took to Instagram to share the news. She wrote, "Thank you to my friends that have stood beside me. All I asked for was time and understanding."

Before the reality star declared her major win, she also shared a screenshot of the LA Times article with the caption, "Wow. I knew about jewelry, shopping sprees, and plastic surgery but this really threw me for a loop."

As per the LA Times, Girardi transferred $300K to judge Tricia Bigelow, his mistress, the week she closed on a Santa Monica property, an oceanfront condominium building in which she bought a unit in 2015. The report noted that the transfer did not come from Girardi’s personal bank account, but rather from a trust account containing settlement money for clients of his law firm, Girardi Keese. When Girardi transferred Bigelow the funds, the account had money meant for cancer victims and other residents of a polluted Inland Empire community.

In December 2020, Jayne, who filed for divorce in November 2022, posted and deleted photos of screenshots of sexual text messages exchanged between Girardi and Bigelow. She said, “This is Justice Tricia A Bigelow. She was f–king my husband Tom Girardi and he was paying her Saks bill and paying for her plastic surgery."