How did Erika Jayne and Tom Girardi meet?
Girardi and Jayne met when she was a waitress at Chasen’s, a restaurant in West Hollywood. He reached out to Jayne through his secretary, Jayne recalled in her memoir Pretty Mess. “I told her, ‘Tell Mr. Girardi if he wants to take me out on a date, he needs to call me himself and ask me and give me enough time to prepare.’ You know how men are, especially if they are successful. They expect you to drop everything right away," she wrote. “That’s not how I work, I don’t care who you are.”
When did Erika Jayne and Tom Girardi get married?
Jayne and Girardi tied the knot in January 1999. They did not have a prenuptial agreement, with Jayne explaining to Andy Cohen on Then & Now in 2017, “I don’t have a prenup. But let me tell you something, let me be very clear. I’m married to a very powerful lawyer. A prenup wouldn’t stand in his way anyway. So it doesn’t matter whether you had one or you didn’t, it’s gonna be all Tom’s way, I assure you. He’ll rip that piece of paper to shreds in two seconds!”
When did Erika Jayne and Tom Girardi divorce?
Jayne filed for divorce from Girardi in November 2020. Jayne accusedGirardi of infidelity, with one mistress allegedly being California Justice Tricia A. Bigelow. Bigelow, who is married, vehemently denied reports of an affair but did admit to dating Girardi years before either of them wed their spouses. In December 2020, Girardi filed paperwork to nix any spousal support for Jayne.
What are Erika Jayne and Tom Girardi’s net worth?
Jayne and Girardi’s net worth may well be in the negatives. At his peak, Girardi was netting 40% of his clients’ settlements in legal fees, but in December 2020, documents obtained by The Blast revealed that Girardi was in “involuntary bankruptcy,” in which bankruptcy is declared against, instead of by the bankrupt party. That bankruptcy may well extend to Jayne, as Girardi’s firm paid tens of millions in alleged loans to Jayne’s company, EJ Global. Bankruptcy attorney Zev Shechtman explained to Variety, “The trustees in those cases may have claims against her for every dollar that she received from Mr. Girardi or from Girardi Keese…If she has the property that was purchased with the debtor’s money—with their money—it’s probably community property. It probably belongs to the bankruptcy estate. It already belongs to the estate. They should be liquidated to pay creditors. The only way that she would have property that isn’t the property of the bankruptcy estate is if she had separate property. And even if she had separate property, the size of the judgments against her for receiving so much from either Girardi Keese or Tom Girardi could result in a judgment that would mean that she’d have to turn over whatever separate assets she has.”
What did The Housewife & The Hustler reveal about Erika Jayne and Tom Girardi?
Tom Girardi admitted he blew between $80 million and $50 million
In a deposition video featured in The Housewife & The Hustler, Girardi admitted that at one point he had between $80 million and $50 million in cash, and now all of that money is dunzo. “That’s all gone,” he said. “I also have a stock portfolio of about $50 million. That’s all gone. I don’t have any money.”
Other attorneys side-eyed Erika Jayne and Tom Girardi flaunting their wealth
Jayne admitted in an interview with E! Newsthat her glam squad (hairstylists, makeup artists, wardrobe stylists, clothes) costs $40,000 every month. Attorney Brian Kabateck said it was a really bad look (especially Girardi boasting of their two private planes on RHOBH), explaining, “We sue the man! You don’t want to be the man.”
Tom Girardi was accused of financial malfeasance for a client who survived a gas explosion
Joe Ruigomez is featured prominently in The Housewife & The Hustler. His family hired Girardi after a gas explosion in Ruigomez’s San Bruno, Calif., neighborhood killed his girlfriend and left him permanently scarred and suffering lifelong medical issues. Girardi successfully sued Pacific Gas & Electric on behalf of Ruigomez and secured a settlement in 2013 for millions of dollars. Girardi told the family he would put the money, which he claimed would take about three months to process, into some of his investments and that it would collect six percent interest. Girardi agreed to pay Ruigomez in installments, but the family alleged that his payments were often either late or missing. In 2017, the family alleged that he completely stopped sending them payments. The family sued for the remaining funds, and Girardi agreed to pay them a settlement of $12 million, noting in writing that he would pay $1 million immediately and another $2.5 million within a few months. The family alleged that the second payment still hasn’t come.
Tom Girardi and Erika Jayne are being sued by a lot of people
In December 2020, Jayne and Girardi were both sued for allegedly embezzling funds meant for widows and children of the 2018 Lion Air crash to fund their “XXPEN$IVE” lifestyle. The lawsuit alleged that their divorce filing was a “sham” to protect their money. Later that month, Girardi was held in civil contempt for refusing to explain what happened to $2 million of the money from the Lion Air settlement, and both Girardi’s personal and his firm’s assets were frozen; Girardi claimed to have just $15,000 in his firm’s bank account. Girardi was later diagnosed with late-onset Alzheimer’s disease and placed under a conservatorship run by his brother, Robert. According to the Los Angeles Times, the judge referred the case for a potential criminal investigation as well. The couple’s legal issues by no means end there. Girardi’s law firm partner, Robert Keese, along with two others, sued Girardi to dissolve a business venture, alleging Girardi owed them $315,000 in income from the venture. They also accused Girardi of taking out more than $7 million in loans for the business that he put to his own personal use. Each of the three plaintiffs seeks $442,500 in the suit. Wells Fargo Vendor Financial Services also sued Girardi’s firm for allegedly failing to pay $882,715.52 from five different loans through their bank. Wells Fargo also seeks to seize the properties from two leases in California. The Los Angeles Timesreported that throughout his career, Girardi was actually sued more than 100 times, but that he allegedly used his connections to keep in good standing with the California State Bar.
It’s unclear how much Erika Jayne knew about Tom Girardi’s finances
Following the premiere of The Housewife & The Hustler, it became unclear how much Jayne knew about Girardi’s money situation, and her own bankruptcy attorneys withdrew from her case, PEOPLEreported. Her lawyers, Dinsmore & Shohl LLP, wrote in documents, “The relationship of trust and confidence that is essential to a properly functioning attorney-client relationship has broken down and, in the good faith assessment of counsel, the relationship is irreparable.” It is important to note that Jayne has not legally been charged with any crimes at this time. In the documentary, Law360 reporter Brandon Lowrey pointed out that Jayne’s name is on a lot of Girardi’s business filings, explaining, “Tom and Erika, they’re stuck together in these bankruptcy proceedings. A lot of these debts, that they owe in bankruptcy proceedings, [they] owe together, possibly. It’s going to be hard for her to say to she didn’t know that anything was going on.”
Appearing on Real Housewives of Beverly Hills is risky for Erika Jayne
Jayne will continue starring on RHOBH, and experts say that it’s unwise for Jayne to remain on the show because of its displays of wealth. Sunny Hostinof The View pointed out that Jayne has said on the show several times that many of her luxury goods were gifts to her from Girardi, which would make them separate assets from his in the event of a lawsuit. She said skeptically, “I’m not sure as a legal proposition wins the day.” Next, find out what Garcelle Beauvais said about being the first Black housewife on The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills!
