Real Housewife Hit With Major Lawsuit After Luxury Vacation

erika jayne lawsuit lax airport

Canva Erika Jayne was served with a $50 million lawsuit after landing at LAX.

A newly filed court document obtained by Heavy confirms reports Erika Jayne was served with a $50 million lawsuit at Los Angeles International Airport in July after returning from a vacation to Hawaii with fellow “Real Housewives of Beverly Hills” stars. The New York Post’s Page Six published video of the moment a process server handed Jayne a stack of documents at LAX.

Jayne is facing several legal battles in connection to her estranged husband, Tom Girardi, and the collapse of his law firm, Girardi Keese. Girardi and his fellow lawyers are being accused in several lawsuits of fraud and Jayne has been named in multiple legal documents with accusations that she aided in the firm’s schemes and benefited financially from them. Jayne and her attorneys have denied any wrongdoing and have said the focus should be on Girardi and his now-shuttered firm.

Jayne was served with documents in a lawsuit filed by another law firm, Edelson PC, which partnered with Girardi Keese to represent the families of victims of a 2018 LionAir plane crash in Indonesia. Jayne and her company, EJ Global, are named as defendants. They are accused of conspiring with Girardi and his firm to steal money from clients for their personal gain.


Erika Jayne’s Lawyers Have to Respond to the Lawsuit Now That She’s Been Served

Erika Jayne was returning from a Hawaiian vacation alongside “RHOBH” co-stars Lisa Rinna and Diane Jenkins when she was served with the lawsuit at LAX, according to Page Six. Video shows the process server handing Jayne two stacks of documents. The woman can be heard saying to Jayne, “I just wanted to give you these documents. This is a summons and complaint to serve you.”

On August 8, court documents were filed confirming that Jayne was served with the Edelson PC lawsuit. The process server said in the court filing that Jayne was served with the complaint and other documents on Friday, July 22, 2022, at 11:19 p.m. while she was at 1 World Way in Los Angeles, which is LAX.

Lawyers in the case met on August 8 and agreed to jointly request an extension for Jayne’s attorneys to respond to the lawsuit, according to court records. The deadline was set for August 12, but the extension would allow them to have until September 2, court documents show.

The lawsuit, filed in San Francisco federal court, states, “The firm was siphoning off millions to fund Tom’s and his wife Erika’s all-consuming need to spend—funding a lifestyle so lavish that Erika was a cast member of ‘The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills.'” Jayne’s attorney, Evan Borges, told Bloomberg Law after the lawsuit was filed in July that it is, “Another misguided attempt to blame Erika for actions of Tom Girardi and others of which she had no knowledge and in which she had no involvement.”


Jayne Is Also Appealing a Ruling Ordering Her to Turn Over Diamond Earrings in a Bankruptcy Case & Was Recently Sued by Nicolas Cage’s Ex

erika jayne lawsuit lax

GettyErika Jayne.

Jayne is embroiled in multiple lawsuits, bankruptcy cases and her divorce from Girardi, all while still filming for “RHOBH.” Some of the legal drama has played out in front of the Bravo TV show’s cameras.

Jayne told Entertainment Tonight in June 2022, “It’s not a good place to be and I feel like the court of public opinion is also hard to navigate because people don’t have all of the facts, and they tend to gravitate towards sensationalized headlines. … I think people have sort of dehumanized me into this place, which is not the case. I’m fighting literally for my life.”

While the 12th season of “The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills” airs, new legal battles have popped up. She was named in a lawsuit filed in California state court by Christina Fulton, Nicolas Cage’s ex, in July. Fulton says she is owed money taken from her by Girardi Keese after she settled a car crash lawsuit, according to court documents.

In late July, Jayne’s lawyer filed an appeal of a bankruptcy judge’s decision to sell $750,000 diamond earrings that had been given to her as a gift by Girardi, court documents show. Jayne turned over the earrings earlier this year. Lawyers in the bankruptcy case have argued that Girardi used money from a lawsuit settlement to buy the jewelry, according to court documents.

Jayne revealed on the latest episode of “RHOBH” that she isn’t rushing to finalize her divorce with Girardi because she thinks she would have to pay the 83-year-old alimony. She added that the financial and legal issues are hindering the divorce proceedings, “Like, I’m legally separated, so my life has moved on and everything is separate. But I can’t get a divorce right now. There’s so much legal s*** going on. It’s a weird time and I’m really ready for it to be over.”