‘RHOBH’ Star Erika Jayne Deposed in $25 Million Bankruptcy Lawsuit Linked to Ex Tom Girardi
Real Housewives of Beverly Hills star, Erika Jayne, sat for a deposition as part of a bankruptcy lawsuit that seeks to recover the $25 million her estranged husband Tom Girardi’s now-defunct law firm funneled into her company.
Radar Online obtained court documents that revealed that the trustee overseeing the Chapter 7 bankruptcy informed the court that the reality star was deposed.
The trustee wrote—“The [trustee] has deposed [Jayne]. No other depositions have been taken or noticed.”
Erika filed for divorce in November 2020, one month before Girardi was slammed with a lawsuit that accused the lawyer of embezzling millions from former clients. He was forced into a Chapter 7 bankruptcy and the reality star was later named as a defendant in a federal lawsuit, which alleged that she played a role in Tom’s reported schemes. The ex-couple was accused of embezzlement and fraud, and a court-appointed trustee was hired to evaluate and sell off Girardi’s assets to pay back his creditors. Erika has been embroiled in multiple lawsuits demanding that she return the money Girardi’s firm spent to support her company, EJ Global. Erika has denied having any knowledge of her husband’s alleged crimes.
Court documents revealed that Girardi Keese spent $14 million on EJ Global’s American Express bills over several years.
In June, a judge ordered that a pair of diamond earrings, gifted to Erika by her husband in 2007, be auctioned off to the highest bidder to help pay off Girardi’s creditors. The trustee previously sued the Bravo star to turn over the earrings purchased in 2007 by her then-husband for $750k. Girardi was accused of using money owed to clients to pay for the lavish gift.
The Bravo star asked the judge to allow her to keep the jewelry, claiming she was an “innocent spouse” with no knowledge of her husband’s alleged misdeeds.
The judge noted that Erika’s supposed lack of awareness of her ex’s alleged crimes had no relevance, and ordered that the earrings be turned over as property of the estate.
The auction company, John Moran Auctioneers, tossed shade at Erika by tagging her in the post, seemingly to put the reality star on notice that the sale was moving forward, despite her appeal.
The November announcement was captioned — “We. Have. THE. Earrings,” with hashtags, #erikajayne and #diamondearrings.
Stephen Swan, Vice President of John Moran Auctioneers, stated in the caption — “They are quite possibly the most talked about jewelry in the world at the moment, which adds kind of an unknown excitement and interest factor.”
In the post’s comment section, the company confirmed that the buyer would not remain anonymous to the trustee overseeing the bankruptcy case.
The earrings were recently auctioned off for $250k despite Erika appeal.
Avigail is an Entertainment blogger at All About The Tea, who specializes in The Real Housewives of Atlanta and The Real Housewives of Potomac. Avigail has a background in marketing. She’s a Brooklynite living in the Bahamas, with a passion for travel, writing, reality TV watching, pop culture and spoken word.