Amy Sussman/Getty Erika Girardi
Erika Girardi is facing another legal battle in the aftermath of her estranged husband Tom Girardi‘s alleged embezzlement activities.
The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills star, 50, and her company EJ Global, LLC were named in a $2.1 million complaint filed Thursday, which was obtained by PEOPLE, claiming she “aided and abetted” Tom, 82, in his law firm Girardi & Keese’s alleged financial wrongdoings.
“The complaint is another misguided effort to blame Erika for the conduct of others in which she had no part,” Erika’s attorney Evan C. Borges tells PEOPLE in a statement.
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“Erika has no law degree and never worked at or managed her former husband’s law firm,” Borges adds. “Whatever Mr. Girardi or others at his law firm did or said to the plaintiffs in this case, Erika had no knowledge or role in any of it. The focus should be on Mr. Girardi, his law firm, and anyone else who enabled what he did. Piling on Erika may generate publicity, but it’s without any basis in reality.”
The lawsuit, filed on behalf of attorney Manuel H. Miller and Kathleen Bajgrowicz, mother of the late NFL star Chuck Osborne who died after repeated head trauma in 2012, claims Erika “knew about the scheme” by which Tom allegedly withheld money due to clients and co-counsel. It also alleges that she was aware that victims were “funding her notoriously lavish lifestyle” shown on RHOBH.
Steve Eichner/AP Erika and Tom Girardi
Tom and Miller jointly represented Bajgrowicz when she sued the NFL over her son’s death, agreeing to share the fees. After reaching a settlement with the league, Tom was responsible for distributing funds to Bajgrowicz and Miller, but they allege he “lulled Plaintiffs into believing that the funds could not be distributed to anyone until various issues were first resolved.”
“Unknown to Plaintiffs, Girardi had already taken their money and breached his and the firm’s fiduciary duty to distribute the funds to Plaintiffs,” they add.
Additionally, the complaint argues that Erika was “intimately involved in Girardi & Keese’s business dealings.”
“Defendants knew that Plaintiffs were fraud victims but did nothing to protect them and instead prioritized their own financial gain at Plaintiffs’ expense,” the suit adds. “Defendants should be required to compensate Plaintiffs for the harm they have caused and should be punished for aiding and abetting Girardi’s breach of fiduciary duty and their financial elder abuse of Plaintiffs.”
Rich Polk/getty
After 21 years of marriage, Erika filed for divorce from Tom in November 2020. A month later, the pair was sued for allegedly using the split to embezzle money and have since faced a slew of other legal controversies, after he was accused of defrauding other clients.
Erika’s attorney has since denied her involvement in the embezzlement, while Tom has been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s and dementia, for which he was placed under a temporary conservatorship.
The Pretty Mess artist spoke to PEOPLE this week about how she’s doing while filming season 12 of RHOBH. “Well, everything’s not hunky-dory,” Erika said. “Look, I’ve had a hard time. My life was turned upside down last year, and this is where I’m at and picking up the pieces.
RELATED VIDEO: Embezzlement Suit Against Erika Girardi Dismissed in Illinois, Will Be Refiled in California
“And I’ve struggled and I’ve stumbled, and I can admit that, and I can go on with my life. Actually watching me rebuild my life. And some days I wish you weren’t watching me rebuild my life, but it’s true. It’s what happens.”
Erika added: “I’m human. I’m here to tell my story, and it’s not always perfect.”
