The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills star Kyle Richard’s husband, Mauricio Umansky, was just dealt a legal blow when it comes to the lawsuit filed against him, over allegations he acted unethically during the sale of a $32 Million Malibu mansion for a former client.
In the lawsuit, Mauricio was essentially accused of secretly selling the $32 million home to himself and a partner, only to flip it later for the sale price of $69.9 million, netting a profit of $37 million.
Once his client learned about the flip, they fired off a letter to Western World, the insurance company of Mauricio’s real estate company, The Agency, demanding millions in damages because of Mauricio’s actions. Mauricio’s insurance company then decided to sue him, stating they shouldn’t have to pay out millions or defend him because they determined he did act unethically.
Mauricio responded to the lawsuit last month, denying all claims and filing his own counter lawsuit against his insurance company. He also asked the court to dismiss their lawsuit against him until the issue with the seller was resolved, however, The Blast is reporting that the judge did not agree with Mauricio’s position, and has ordered the case move forward.
In doing so, the court also denied Mauricio’s attempt to have certain allegations removed from the complaint against him after he argued that the claims were scandalous and unnecessary. He maintained that his actions were neither unethical nor illegal, and that the transaction was subject to terms of a settlement agreement between the seller and the US government, and was approved by the Department of Justice.
The judge disagreed with that, as well, and stated that the allegations weren’t scandalous, but simply allegations of “unprofessional behavior.”
The dispute began after the seller contacted Mauricio’s insurance company, asking for $8 million in damages. The seller wanted Mauricio to pay $5 million, and the insurance company to cut a check for the remaining amount.
Western World began defending Mauricio against the claim, but ultimately decided that he was at fault, and that they shouldn’t have to foot the bill for his behavior. This led to the insurance company teaming up with the seller to bring a lawsuit against Mauricio to hold him liable for breach of fiduciary duties and negligence due to his failure to disclose all offers and counteroffers, failure to disclose his own financial benefit from the sale and for causing the home to be sold for a lower price than it should have been.
In Mauricio’s counter lawsuit, he accused Western World of taking the seller’s side in the dispute, and choosing to sue him, rather than fulfill their obligations. By bringing the lawsuit, Mauricio claimed that the insurance company made a private dispute very public, and shared confidential documents Mauricio had provided to them.
The lawsuits remain ongoing.
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