A former personal injury attorney and former celebrity husband has been found guilty by a Los Angeles federal court of stealing at least $15 million from multiple former clients.
Thomas Girardi, 85, of Seal Beach, was found guilty on four counts of wire fraud. His sentencing date has been set for Dec. 6 by U.S. District Judge Josephine L. Staton. Girardi could face a maximum sentence of 20 years in federal prison for each count.
“Disbarred plaintiffs’ personal injury attorney Thomas Vincent Girardi was found guilty by a jury today of leading a years-long scheme in which he embezzled tens of millions of dollars of money that belonged to his clients, some of whom awaited payment for treatment of severe physical injuries,” the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Central District of California said in a statement.
Girardi is the former husband of Erika “Jayne” Girardi, who featured in the reality TV show “The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills.”
“Tom Girardi built celebrity status and lured in victims by falsely portraying himself as a ‘Champion of Justice.’ In reality, he was a Robin-Hood-in-reverse, stealing from the needy to support a lavish, Hollywood lifestyle,” U.S. Attorney Martin Estrada said in a statement following the jury verdict.
“Today’s verdict shows that the game is up—we can all now see this defendant for what he was and the victims he callously betrayed.”
According to the U.S. attorney’s office, the prosecution uncovered a scheme by which Girardi embezzled money from client trust accounts at his law firm, Girardi Keese, from which he stole millions while failing to make payouts to his clients.
Girardi allegedly ran this scheme for more than 10 years, from 2010 through 2020, in addition to misappropriating client funds in order to pay for an extravagant lifestyle.
“Girardi diverted tens of millions of dollars from his law firm’s operating account to pay illegitimate expenses, including more than $25 million to pay the expenses of EJ Global, a company formed by his wife related to her entertainment career, as well as spent millions of dollars of Girardi Keese funds on private jet travel, jewelry, luxury cars, and exclusive golf and social clubs,” the office said.
The legal problems related to Girardi’s theft of client funds forced his firm into involuntary bankruptcy at the end of 2020. Less than two years later, in July 2022, Girardi was disbarred by California’s State Bar.
Girardi was indicted for his crimes in February, alongside Christopher Kazuo Kamon, the firm’s former chief financial officer. Kamon, 50, formerly of Encino and Palos Verdes, was residing in the Bahamas at the time of his November 2022 arrest on a federal criminal complaint.
Kamon is charged with multiple fraud counts for allegedly aiding and abetting Girardi’s scheme to defraud clients, having allegedly also embezzled millions of dollars from the law firm’s accounts for his own personal enrichment.
Kamon has pleaded not guilty to the charges. He remains in federal custody while awaiting trial in January 2025.
In a separate case, Girardi and Kamon also face federal fraud charges in Chicago, alongside David R. Lira, Girardi’s son-in-law and a former lawyer at Girardi Keese, with a trial scheduled for March 2025.
