EXCLUSIVEErika Jayne Sued Yet Again! 'RHOBH' Star & Her Company EJ Global LLC Named In $50 Million Racketeering Lawsuit
Erika Jayne just can't seem to catch a break.
The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills star, 50, has yet another legal showdown ahead of her, as Edelson PC law firm has sued Jayne, her company, EJ Global LLC, as well as estranged husband Tom Girardi's former law firm, Girardi & Keese, and its lenders for $55 million in damages.
The law firm is accusing the reality star of knowing more than she's been letting on, while pointing out how the former couple flaunted their lavish lives for the world to see.
According to court documents obtained by OK!, the Edelson PC firm accuses the parties of racketeering, conspiracy to commit racketeering, receipt of stolen property, aiding and abetting concealment of stolen property, money had and received, conversion, unlawful business practice, consumers legal remedies act and deceit.
"As the layers have been pulled back more and more each day with the pending bankruptcies of Girardi Keese and Tom, and the torrent of claims and investigations that came in the wake of the firm's collapse, the real story is one that seems like a tale out of a John Grisham novel: Girardi Keese was little more than a criminal enterprise, disguised as a law firm," the scathing filing states.
The Chicago actress has been plagued by legal drama since the ex-attorney, 82 — who she has yet to be officially divorce from due to the on-going lawsuits — was forced into bankruptcy by his creditors last year after former clients such as burn victims, widows and orphans claimed that the once well respected lawyer never paid them their settlement funds.
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In the new legal docs, Edelson PC makes the case that "every bit" of the firm's "outward-facing success was built atop a house of cards," claiming that Girardi & Keese "was siphoning off millions to fund Tom's and Erika's all-consuming need to spend — funding a lifestyle so lavish that Erika was a cast member of The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills."
"The couple certainly played up the part of flaunting their wealth and the fact that Tom was a powerful attorney who wooed celebrities, judges, and politicians alike," the papers go on to allege. "But that money was not earned by the firm or by Tom, but was stolen: from co-counsel, from vendors with long overdue bills, and — by far the most unforgivable for an attorney — from the firm's own injured clients."
Edelson PC — who requested a jury trial in the suit — also alleges Jayne played the role of a "frontwoman" of the scheme, adding that she was "selling to the world (including unsuspecting clients) that Girardi Keese was successful."
"To this day, Erika uses her significant public platform to lie about her own involvement, and to try to assist Tom and the others in getting away with it," court papers note, while concluding that the Bravo star "made the cynical decision to leverage the scandal to further her career and stay relevant in the tabloids, meaning more exposure and a larger paycheck for her next season of performing on Housewives."
