The California Supreme Court has ordered an elderly attorney who appeared on Real Housewives of Beverly Hills to pay $2.2 million-plus 10% interest to clients from whom it was determined he stole money.
Tom Girardi, 83, was charged with 14 counts of law violations, ethics rules, and acts of moral turpitude for allegedly robbing clients of millions of dollars in large settlement cases, according to media reports.
“It was Jay Edelson, a former colleague of Girardi, who blew the whistle on his misconduct,” said Nicole Clark, co-founder, and CEO of Trellis Research. “The Girardi case is a lesson for attorneys to be more responsive to internal monitoring of their own client trust accounts.”
The Jan. 10 order, signed by State Bar Court Judge Yvette Roland, requires Girardi to pay the money to four minor children of Lion Air flight 610 crash victims as well as restitution to a bankruptcy trustee, Anthem Inc, Medicare, and Garretson Resolution Group.
“Edelson, Girardi’s former colleague, has proposed a deal to compensate Girardi’s former clients through his firm’s insurer, Hudson Property & Casualty,” Clark told the Southern California Record. “Through this deal, Edelson would acquire all related claims these clients have against Girardi, granting his firm the ability to pursue legal action against Girardi and his co-conspirators.
As previously reported in the Southern California Record, the Girardi Keese law firm, founded by Thomas Girardi, was forced into Chapter 7 bankruptcy proceedings in December 2020 by Jill O’Callahan, Robert Keese, and John Abassian who are seeking to collect some $6.5 million. O'Callahan is the widow of deceased Girardi Keese partner James O'Callahan. Abassian worked as co-counsel with Girardi Keese lawyers and Keese was Girardi's partner at Girardi Keese.
“At least one judge has put a hold on a collections lawsuit against Girardi’s assets until the bankruptcy trustee has completed its investigation of Girardi and his law firm,” Clark said. “We are already seeing judges take note of this bankruptcy investigation, a process which has expanded the number of individuals who may also be liable for his debts.”
Girardi is the estranged husband of Real Housewives of Beverly Hills star Erika Jayne. Although she initiated a divorce in 2020, Jayne has been implicated in Girardi’s bankruptcy proceedings.
“After the bankruptcy trustee discovered that Girardi’s law firm had transferred more than $20 million in loans to [Erika Jayne]’s various businesses, a judge granted one family with embezzlement claims against Girardi the authority to pursue a collections lawsuit against his estranged wife,” Clark said.
Girardi's brother, Robert Girardi, 77, was appointed temporary guardian over his older brother's conservatorship, which includes the person and the estate.
“Under a conservatorship, a third party can take actions on his behalf, proceeding with any impending legal actions or bankruptcy proceedings,” Clark added. “What may have a bigger impact on his ability to pay is the costly investigation spearheaded by the State Bar of California into his legal practice, which could levy even more debts onto his estate.”