Erika Jayne is in a pretty mess now.
The star of “The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills,” 49, was dropped by her lawyers following the release of a new Hulu documentary, “The Housewife and the Hustler,” according to court documents obtained by Page Six on Tuesday.
Dinsmore & Shohl LLP filed paperwork to withdraw as Jayne’s counsel in her estranged husband Tom Girardi’s Chapter 7 bankruptcy case. The law firm claimed it notified Jayne of its decision no later than Monday — coincidentally the same day the alarming documentary dropped.
While it is unclear what exactly went wrong, the lawyers said in their court documents that “the relationship of trust and confidence that is essential to a properly functioning attorney-client relationship has broken down and, in the good faith assessment of counsel, the relationship is irreparable.”
Dinsmore & Shohl LLP also said its team told Jayne to seek a new lawyer and warned her of “the potential consequences of not timely securing replacement counsel.” It is unclear if she has since retained new attorneys.
While the ABC-produced documentary focused on giving a voice to the clients from whom now-disgraced attorney Girardi, 82, allegedly stole money, it pointed out that the reality star had been listed as a secretary of one of his LLCs and that money was transferred to her company, EJ Global.
“The View” co-host and lawyer Sunny Hostin noted in the film that Jayne has claimed that many of her luxury items were “gifts to her” from Girardi, making them “separate property” in their divorce.
Jayne filed for divorce in November 2020 after two decades of marriage. The case remains ongoing, as Girardi was forced into involuntary bankruptcy.
Law360 features reporter Brandon Lowrey explained in the documentary, “[Tom and Erika are] together in these bankruptcy proceedings. A lot of these debts that they owe in bankruptcy proceedings, [they] owe together, possibly. It’s going to be hard for her to say she didn’t know that anything was going on.”
Jayne has not been formally charged with any crimes for which she would need representation. However, she and Girardi were accused of embezzling settlement funds meant to help the victims of Lion Air Flight 610 through their divorce.
A December lawsuit alleged, “While Erika publicly filed for divorce … on information and belief, that ‘divorce’ is simply a sham attempt to fraudulently protect Tom’s and Erika’s money from those that seek to collect on debts owed by Tom and his law firm GK.”
Jayne previously denied having knowledge of Girardi’s alleged crimes, saying in the “RHOBH” Season 11 trailer, “No one knows the answer but him.”
A rep for Jayne did not immediately respond to Page Six’s request for comment.