Ronald Richards out as special counsel in Girardi bankruptcy

Ronald N. Richards, who was hired by the bankruptcy trustee of famed plaintiffs' attorney Thomas V. Girardi's law firm to investigate and recover any assets that had been transferred to his wife, said he is out as special litigation counsel.

The Beverly Hills lawyer attracted a large following on Twitter commenting on the Girardi bankruptcy and especially about his celebrity wife, Erika Girardi, before and during his time working for Trustee Elissa D. Miller, a partner with SulmeyerKupetz.

Richards declined to comment on the circumstances of his departure as the trustee's attorney during a telephone interview Wednesday night.

"I want to be liberated to talk about what's important about the case, and that's easier if I'm not a lawyer tethered to a client," he said. "I think it's better just to cut ties at this point."

There were no court filings about Richards' status late Wednesday, but the attorney said he would substitute out of the case. In re: Girardi Keese, 20-BK21022 (C.D. Bankruptcy Ct., filed Dec. 18, 2020).

Miller could not be reached for comment Wednesday evening.

Richards said he would continue working on another lawsuit involving Erika Girardi, best known to the general public as Erika Jayne, a star of the Bravo television series, "The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills."

That case involves two lawyers who have sued Erika Girardi and former Girardi Keese attorneys for fraud by the now-bankrupt firm. Law Offices of Philip R. Sheldon et al. v. Girardi et al., 20STCV47160 (LA County Sup. Ct filed Dec. 9, 2020).

And Richards plans to keep opining about the Girardi litigation on Twitter, where he characteristically announced his departure from the bankruptcy case.

He declined to say whether he had quit or been fired by Miller, or even if he had spoken to her.

Richards said he's busy with many other lawsuits and noted the Girardi bankruptcy matter was a contingency case.

"My litigation style is better unrestricted," Richards said. "If there's outside complaints or people are telling you to tone it down, I can't operate that way."

"It's best at this point if I'm not involved in the case," he added.

The attorney's outspokenness on Twitter, which sometimes devolved into online feuds with Erika Girardi, drew strong objections from her attorneys, who twice sought to remove him as special litigation counsel.

U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Barry Russell rejected those motions.

In recent weeks, Richards and Erika Girardi's attorney, Greenberg Gross LLP partner Evan C. Borges, have made common cause against a Chicago law firm, Edelson PC, that worked with Girardi Keese in litigation over a 2018 airplane crash in Indonesia.

Borges and Richards both argued that Edelson's bid to remove a stay on its lawsuit, pending in Illinois federal court, accusing Girardi Keese and Erika Girardi of misappropriating settlement funds should be rejected because Edelson's fee-sharing agreement with Girardi Keese was illegal.

This prompted an allegation Tuesday by Edelson PC partner Rafey S. Balabanian that Richards, working for the trustee, and Borges were making a coordinated effort to "mislead and manipulate the court."

"The point, though, is crystal clear: Mr. Richards and Erika are apparently willing to say or do anything they need to in order to keep Edelson's investigation away from Erika Girardi and clear the way for Mr. Richards and Erika to negotiate a back room settlement," Balabanian wrote.

Borges, who called Balabanian's allegations "baloney," said he was surprised to learn Richards would no longer serve as counsel to the trustee.

"That is news to me," Borges said in a telephone interview Wednesday night.

Balabanian and Edelson could not be reached for comment.