Tom Girardi, the estranged husband of Real Housewives of Beverly Hills star Erika Girardi, has been accused of not paying his court reporter company, Veritext, nearly $550,000.
According to court documents obtained by Us Weekly, Tom owes the company $548,941.28 in unpaid invoices. The legal filing comes a month after Erika, 49, filed for divorce from the attorney, whom she married in 1999 and has since accused of cheating on her during their 21-year union.
The Veritext lawsuit is one of many cases against Tom making headlines. Class action firm Edelson PC filmed a motion and accused the pair of embezzling settlement money for families of the victims of Lion Air Flight 610, a 2018 crash that killed 189 people. The firm alleged in the suit that the duo’s separation was fake as they “are on the verge of financial collapse and locked in a downward spiral of mounting debts and dwindling funds.”
A source revealed that Erika feels “betrayed” by the situation, adding that she was “unaware” of the allegations and never thought Tom “could be capable of doing what he has been accused of in court.”
The source added, “Tom always handled all of the finances and that was how they handled things. She is just reeling from all of this … but Erika is a tough cookie and she isn’t stupid. She will get through this.”
During Tom’s September testimony, he shed light on his financial troubles, claiming he hadn’t “taken a penny in salary out of the firm for more than two years.”
He told the judge, “At one point I had about $80 million or $50 million in cash. That’s all gone. I don’t have any money.”
Earlier this month, a judge froze Tom’s assets. The 81-year-old lawyer is also being sued by his business partners, Robert Keese, Robert Finnerty and Jill O’Callahan. Additionally, their firm, Girardi Keese, allegedly owes Wells Fargo $882,000.
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