Disbarred celebrity lawyer Tom Girardi has been convicted in Los Angeles of embezzling tens of millions of dollars from clients, including several with severe physical injuries and families of people killed in accidents.
LOS ANGELES -- LOS ANGELES (AP) — Disbarred celebrity lawyer Tom Girardi was convicted Tuesday of embezzling tens of millions of dollars from his clients, including several with severe physical injuries and families of people killed in accidents.
After a 13-day trial and less than a full day of deliberations, the federal jury in Los Angeles found the 85-year-old Girardi guilty of four counts of wire fraud.
Girardi is the estranged husband of “The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills” star Erika Jayne and appeared on the show himself dozens of times between 2015 and 2020.
He was once among the most prominent lawyers in the nation, often representing victims of major disasters against powerful companies.
But his law empire collapsed, and he was disbarred in California in 2022 over client thefts.
“Tom Girardi built celebrity status and lured in victims by falsely portraying himself as a ‘Champion of Justice,’” U.S. Attorney Martin Estrada said in a statement after the verdict. »
