A California bar court judge has recommended the disbarment of lawyer Tom Girardi, whose estranged wife is Erika Girardi of The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills reality TV show.
Girardi did not respond to the ethics charges, said State Bar of California Judge Yvette Roland in her Jan. 10 order.
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The State Bar of California had accused Girardi of failing to pay settlement funds to clients in three separate matters, including $2 million owed to clients who lost loved ones in the in October 2018 crash of Indonesia’s Lion Air Flight 610.
A federal judge froze the assets of Girardi and his law firm, Girardi Keese, in December after a lawsuit accused Girardi of keeping money intended to benefit Lion Air clients. The suit alleged that Girardi embezzled settlement money to support his celebrity lifestyle.
A conservator was named for Girardi last year after testimony that he had Alzheimer’s disease.
Girardi Keese was portrayed in the film Erin Brockovich as helping win a $333 million settlement in a case concerning contaminated drinking water.
Roland’s opinion recommended that Girardi pay more than $2.2 million in restitution.
