Jeweler Of Erika Jayne’s Husband Agrees To Pay $100k In Lawsuit Over Alleged ‘Fraudulent Transfers’
Apr. 24 2023, Published 5:00 p.m. ET
A jeweler who had been paid over six figures by Erika Jayne’s husband Tom Girardi has agreed to pay back a portion of his profits to settle a bankruptcy lawsuit, RadarOnline.com has learned.
According to court documents obtained by RadarOnline.com, the company M.M. Jewelers has agreed to pay back a total of $100k that it received from Girardi.
As we first reported, in 2020, the once-respected lawyer and his law firm Girardi Keese was pushed into bankruptcy by creditors. Jayne’s husband stands accused of running his firm like a Ponzi scheme.
Many former clients had the same story. Girardi secured them a financial settlement in a legal dispute but came up with excuses when it was time to pay out.
Recently, Girardi and his associates were hit with criminal charges related to the alleged embezzling of clients' funds. The once-powerful attorney has been accused of using the embezzled money to fund his lavish life with Jayne — before she left him and filed for divorce.
In the bankruptcy, a trustee was put in charge to take over control of Girardi’s finances and recover as much money as possible for his creditors.
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- Female ‘Friend’ Of Erika Jayne’s Husband Turns Over Pricey Jewelry Gifted To Her By Disbarred Lawyer As Part Of Bankruptcy Battle
- ‘RHOBH’ Star Erika Jayne Slapped With $100k Lawsuit Over Alleged 'Fraudulent Transfers' Made By Her Estranged Husband Tom Girardi's Defunct Law Firm
The trustee filed a series of bombshell lawsuits against companies and individuals Girardi paid in the years before the bankruptcy. The goal was to bring in funds to pay off Girardi’s debts. One of the lawsuits was against Jayne for the return of $25 million Girardi Keese spent on bills for her company, EJ Global.
Another lawsuit was filed against M.M. Jewelers. The suit read, “The world eventually learned that Girardi Keese was nothing more than an illicit and felonious business operated to line the rather large pockets of Thomas, his wife, and numerous cohorts. While the Trustee continues to investigate the magnitude of the fraud that spanned decades, it is obvious that millions of dollars of client funds were stolen and diverted to fund the lavish lifestyles of Thomas and other non-deserving parties.”
The suit said Girardi made 2 payments to M. M. Jeweler totaling $209k The trustee claimed when Girardi’s firm made the payments it was in a “precarious financial state and was not paying creditors.”
“Girardi Keese began a systematic process of draining the available cash, often times consisting of stolen client trust funds, by, among other things, making distributions to certain preferred creditors or third parties from funds of Girardi Keese’s estate,” the suit read. “During the seven-year period prior to the Petition Date, with the assistance of various partners, employees, and family members, Thomas and Girardi Keese conspired by purpose and design to abscond and secrete the assets of Girardi Keese for the purpose of defrauding Girardi Keese’s creditors."
The trustee said the transfers to M. M. Jewelers were “fraudulent” and were on “account of luxury jewelry purchased for, or that solely benefitted, Thomas and Erika Girardi aka Erika Jayne, and had no relation to the operation of, and did not benefit, Girardi Keese.”
The bankruptcy has yet to be fully resolved.