A prosecutor told a Los Angeles jury Tuesday that disbarred attorney Tom Girardi stole millions of dollars from clients and spent it on private jets, jewelry and the career of his now-estranged wife, “Real Housewives of Beverly Hills” star Erika Jayne, but the defense countered that the once-high-powered litigator was the victim of a crooked accountant who looted the defendant’s law firm of more than $50 million.
Girardi, 85, a former plaintiff’s lawyer and ex-owner of the firm Girardi Keese, is accused of engaging in a scheme to defraud the now-defunct firm’s former clients and lying about it.
The defendant treated client trust accounts “like his personal piggy bank,” Assistant U.S. Attorney Scott Paetty told the LA federal court jury in opening statements in Girardi’s criminal trial, adding that some clients “never saw a penny” of their settlements.
“He lied to his clients, stole their money, violated their trust and broke the law,” the prosecutor said.
Prosecutors contend that Girardi and his firm’s former bookkeeper, Chris Kamon, embezzled and pocketed millions that belonged to clients from 2010 to 2020. Girardi faces four counts of wire fraud, while Kamon, 50, is scheduled for trial separately in January.
Federal public defender Sam Cross painted a different picture of Girardi, telling the jury that his client — who suffers from dementia — became forgetful and confused as the years rolled by, and Kamon took advantage of the firm’s weakened owner.
Kamon “is the man Tom Girardi trusted to handle the money … (Girardi) does not know this (theft) is happening,” Cross said in his statement to the panel.
“Tom got old,” the defense attorney said, adding that the law firm descended into “chaos. Some people took advantage.”
As Girardi’s illness progressed, Cross said, “he stopped recognizing people, began wearing the same clothes every day, and started repeating himself.” Yet, he continued signing the checks that piled up on his desk, the attorney said.
Cross said his client was diagnosed with mild to moderate dementia in early 2021 with the condition made worse by a car accident. The defense attorney repeatedly blamed Kamon for masterminding the theft and defrauding a progressively confused Girardi.
A jury consisting of seven males and five females was sworn in Tuesday afternoon. Before the panel was chosen, a pool of about 70 prospective jurors were asked in a questionnaire about their exposure to true crime television, their use of social media, and whether they’ve seen Jayne on “Real Housewives.” The reality TV star is not charged in the case.
Girardi, walking slowly and assisted by a caregiver, sat silently with his attorneys during the first day of trial.
The former plaintiff’s lawyer is accused of stealing about $15 million of client money.
Earlier this year, after several days of hearings, Girardi was found competent to stand trial despite his claim that he has Alzheimer’s disease and is incapable of assisting with his defense. He is free on $250,000 bond and lives in the secure memory ward of an Orange County nursing home.
Paetty said the prosecution would focus on four cases of clients whose settlements were looted.
Once known as a defender of the powerless in class-action lawsuits against corporations, Girardi represented plaintiffs in a number of high-profile cases, including Bryan Stow’s civil suit against Major League Baseball. Stow was the San Francisco Giants fan who sustained severe injuries during an attack in a Dodger Stadium parking lot.
Girardi also represented plaintiffs in the toxic groundwater case against Pacific Gas & Electric Co. that was dramatized in the Oscar-winning 2000 Julia Roberts movie “Erin Brockovich.”
Jayne filed for divorce from Girardi in 2020 after a 21-year marriage. Following the split, the couple listed their Pasadena home for sale at a price of $13 million. Jayne has not been charged in the case against her husband.
After Girardi was disbarred in 2022, the State Bar of California reported it had received 205 complaints against him alleging he misappropriated settlement money, abandoned clients or committed other serious ethical violations over the course of his four-decade career.
Girardi Keese collapsed in late 2020 after Girardi was accused in a Chicago lawsuit of embezzling money meant for clients the firm was representing in litigation over an airplane crash in Indonesia. The lawsuit brought by plaintiffs’ firm Edelson PC has since been transferred to Los Angeles.
Girardi is in Chapter 7 bankruptcy proceedings, as is the now-shuttered Wilshire Boulevard law firm that bore his name and that faces more than $500 million in claims.