Disbarred lawyer Tom Girardi is convicted for stealing $15M from clients
Attorney Tom Girardi is pictured outside a Los Angeles courthouse in July 2014. Federal jurors in Los Angeles have convicted Girardi, 85, on four counts of wire fraud after about four hours of deliberation. (Photo by Damian Dovarganes/The Associated Press)
A disbarred lawyer famous for his legal team’s portrayal in the movie Erin Brockovich was convicted Tuesday for stealing $15 million from four clients over the course of a decade.
Federal jurors in Los Angeles convicted 85-year-old Tom Girardi on four counts of wire fraud after about four hours of deliberation that began Monday, Law360 reports.
The Daily Journal and an Aug. 27 press release from the U.S. Department of Justice also covered the verdict.
In closing arguments Monday, federal prosecutor Ali Moghaddas had contended that Girardi was running a classic Ponzi scheme because he used new client settlement money to pay off old clients and to fund a lavish lifestyle, according to Law360.
Girardi is the estranged husband of Erika Girardi, who has appeared on The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills reality TV show. In the case portrayed in Erin Brockovich, Girardi was on the legal team that secured a $333 million settlement for groundwater contamination.
According to the DOJ press release, Girardi used $25 million from his now-collapsed law firm’s operating account to pay the expenses of an entertainment company formed by his wife. He also spent millions of dollars in firm funds on his private jet, jewelry, luxury cars and exclusive golf and social clubs, the press release said.
“Tom Girardi built celebrity status and lured in victims by falsely portraying himself as a ‘Champion of Justice,’” said U.S. Attorney Martin Estrada of Central District of California in the press release. “In reality, he was a Robin-Hood-in-reverse, stealing from the needy to support … a lavish, Hollywood lifestyle. 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.”
Girardi’s defense lawyers had contended that Girardi wasn’t responsible for financial problems at his firm, Girardi Keese, because of his dementia. A neurology professor had testified at trial that Girardi has such a small brain hippocampus that 98% of people likely have a larger one.
The defense had also argued that Girardi Keese’s former chief financial officer, Christopher Kamon, was responsible for the missing money. He is also charged in the California case.
Girardi Keese is no longer operating after being forced into bankruptcy. Girardi was disbarred in July 2022. Sentencing in the Los Angeles case is scheduled for Dec. 6.
Girardi, Kamon and another lawyer are also charged with stealing $3 million in settlement money in Chicago. Trial in that case is scheduled for March 2025.
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