Erika Girardi didn’t sign a prenuptial agreement before marrying prominent attorney Tom Girardi more than two decades ago. The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills star, who performs under the name Erika Jayne, filed for divorce Tuesday from her husband of 21 years, according to documents obtained by The Blast.
In 2017, Erika, 49, fired back at claims that she had married her husband, 81, for money, telling Andy Cohen on Then & Now in 2017, “I don’t have a prenup.” She added that even if she and her husband had set up a prenup before marrying in 1999, it “wouldn’t stand” a chance when it comes to her lawyer husband’s expertise.
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“But let me tell you something, let me be very clear. I’m married to a very powerful lawyer,” she said. “A prenup wouldn’t stand in his way anyway. So it doesn’t matter whether you had one or you didn’t, it’s going to be all Tom’s way, I assure you. He’ll rip that piece of paper to shreds in two seconds!”
While there was no public indication of marital strife, Erika told E! News Tuesday that her marriage had come to an end. “After much consideration, I have decided to end my marriage to Tom Girardi,” the Bravo star said in a statement. “This is not a step taken lightly or easily. I have great love and respect for Tom and for our years and the lives we built together. It is my absolute wish to proceed through this process with respect and with the privacy that both Tom and I deserved. I request others give us that privacy as well.”
Erika was previously married to Thomas Zizzo, with whom she shares 26-year-old son Tommy, but met Tom after serving as a cocktail waitress at Chasen’s in West Hollywood. “After a year of working in the restaurant, one night, I decided to slip Tom my telephone number,” Erika wrote in her 2018 memoir, Pretty Mess, as per E! News. “We were standing in front of the giant fireplace. ‘Did you hear I was single?’ I asked.” Six months later, the two were engaged.
While Erika has had to defend criticism of the 33-year age gap between herself and Tom for years, she said on RHOBH, “I’ve dealt with this forever: the younger woman that married, the wealthier, older man. I mean, I’m tired of having to justify my 20-year marriage. Go get a 20-year marriage, then come f—ing talk to me.”
