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The Laurita Bankruptcy – Signature Apparel LLC Was Drained of Its Funds and Assets to Support the Lauritas’ Opulent Lifestyle (Updated 3/12/2015)
“Everyone likes to have nice things, but I’m not one to brag about it.” – Jacqueline Laurita, RHONJ Season 1 & 2 Tagline
“I had heard that Joe was saying things that discredit my reputation as a businessman. I was furious, because if there’s one thing I’m not, it’s shady.” – Chris Laurita, Season 4 Episode
UPDATE 3/4/2015: Below is an excerpt from the Memorandum Opinion for two motions before the court. Click here to read the entire motion, which includes background, cover-up, and procedural history of the case.
Counts I and II: Fraud and Negligent Misrepresentation
Counts III and IV: Breach of Fiduciary Duty and Aiding and Abetting Breach of Fiduciary Duty
Count V: Conspiracy
Counts VI and VII: Breach of Contract and Tortious Interference with Contract
Count VIII: Conversion
Count IX: Unjust Enrichment
On March 4, 2015, the Court entered its Memorandum Opinion (A) Granting in Part and Denying in Part the Parties’ Cross-Motions for Summary Judgment and (B) Denying the Defendants’ Daubert Motion (the “Opinion”). For the reasons set forth in the Opinion, it is hereby:
ORDERED that summary judgment is GRANTED to the Defendants as to Counts V and VIII of the Amended Complaint; and it is further
ORDERED that Counts V and VIII of the Amended Complaint are hereby DISMISSED; and it is further
ORDERED that summary judgment is DENIED as to Counts VI and VII of the Amended Complaint; and it is further
ORDERED that summary judgment is GRANTED IN PART AND DENIED IN PART as to Counts I, II, III, IV, and IX of the Amended Complaint, as fully set forth in the Opinion; and it is further
ORDERED that the Daubert Motion is DENIED; and it is further
ORDERED that trial in the above-captioned adversary proceeding shall commence on April 21, 2015.
UPDATE 11/14/2014: An order was granted to extend the time to file objections to the claims though January 30, 2015,
UPDATE 8/2/2014: The trial in the adversarial proceedings against the Lauritas, with Signature Apparel as the plaintiff, is scheduled for November 13, 2014. To delay the trial, the Laurita’s attorneys submitted notices to the court on July 16, 2014, requesting to withdraw as counsel in their four-year representation of the Lauritas on the basis of their failure to pay legal fees. The court granted the request. The Laurita Adversary Proceeding and the Laurita/Iconix Adversary Proceeding each have been pending for years, and the Withdrawal Notices came on the eve of scheduled summary judgment motions and trial in these matters. Signature Apparel objected to the withdrawal motions, stating:
“The Laurita Defendants pillaged Signature pre- and post-Petition, as will be demonstrated in the forthcoming proceedings, and they are well aware that the estate has limited resources. The proposed withdrawal of their counsel should not be an occasion for yet more delay and needless waste of Signature’s limited resources.
“Delay has been the Laurita Defendants’ primary defense tactic in these proceedings, and Signature is concerned that this latest and last gambit simply is more of the same. Withdrawal for failure to pay fees at this late stage in these matters, when Troutman Sanders clearly was aware of that issue for months, is ethically suspect at the least. Signature respectfully submits that, prior to the resolution of this issue, the Laurita Defendants should be required to provide information concerning who specifically intends to hire new counsel and what efforts he or she will undertake to minimize any further delay of the dispositive motion practice and proceedings in these matters.”
Jacqueline Laurita in her final Bravo blog for season 4 said:
“I know I said during the reunion that I wished Joe Giudice would go to jail, but regardless of if I think he deserves it or not, I will not wish anything bad for Teresa or Joe. They have 4 beautiful girls, and if anything unfortunate happens to either one of them, it effects those girls, and as a mother I do not want that.”
Jacqueline Laurita is implying that Joe Giudice deserves to go to jail — does she feel the same way about herself, her husband and other Laurita family members? Chris Laurita and his brother Joseph diverted funds from their company (Signature Apparel LLC, which went bankrupt in 2010) for personal expenses and transferred company funds to family members and other family businesses, draining the company so dry that it was an empty shell and creditors couldn’t be paid.
Jacqueline, who is named as a defendant in the bankruptcy case, had been summoned for a deposition on November 13, 2012. The trustee’s attorney Michael Fox told RumorFix on October 25, 2012:
“It frustrates me that they are so public about their lavish lifestyle and they show indifference.”
Signature requested to extend the deadlines: for fact discovery and depositions to January 18, 2013, reply expert reports to April 16, 2013, and expert discovery and depositions to May 22, 2013.
“Here’s how the Laurita bankruptcy contrasts to the Guidice bankruptcy: Teresa and Joe were making big bucks but spent ALL of their money, and had no savings. So when the real estate crash happened, they were in no way prepared for the massive decrease in income both personally and for Joe’s business. Obviously, they had no choice but to file bankruptcy, which initially was completely legitimate. Should they have been wiser with their money when times were good? Yes, but this a free country and they’re free do what they want (legally). Luckily, Teresa was able to start making more money than ever had before, and they are now better off as they have withdrawn their bankruptcy and are living more modestly and paying down their debts. While there were problems with fraud later on in their bankruptcy filing (which I believe were resolved, possibly allowing them to file again if they wanted to), it is better for everyone that they are committing to paying instead of trying to discharge their debt. I would label Teresa and Joe as just stupid with money and victims of the economy. The Lauritas are criminals.” – CenNJ, October 26, 2012, Fame-Whorgas
On March 14, 2013, arguments were scheduled to be heard for all motions in the federal bankruptcy case against the Lauritas:
Until these motions are settled, all depositions have been suspended. However, the discovery part, both fact and expert, is ongoing. More than likely, Jacqueline will not have to appear, and it is doubtful Bravo will film it. This is preliminary until all evidence is gathered and examined. Once completed, then it will be decided whether charges are to be filed. But there certainly appears to be a mountain of evidence, so the Lauritas definitely have a lot on their plate right now between the hearings, the tax lien, the possible foreclosure, and Jacqueline’s plastic surgery bills. – Jeannie5233, March 13, 2013, Fame-Whorgas
According to legal documents dated March 24, 2011 (one of the main points is that creditors forced a bankruptcy, supposedly before the Lauritas could sell a valuable license, yet they went ahead and sold it anyway – click on the link and see pages 5, 6 and 25):
Chris and Joseph failed to respect the separate legal existence of Signature Apparel LLC and the other Laurita companies [including Pyramid Trading, Inc., Pyramid Trading Corp., Retail Solutions, Four Brothers Retail and Cool Five LLC (collectively referred to as the “Laurita Pyramid Companies” ), or to companies or business ventures in which Chris and Joseph were investing, including Angelo’s Favorite, The Hungry Ghosts Movie LLC, and the BSTC Group], and treated the assets of those companies as if those assets were Chris and Joseph’s own personal assets, including, by way of example:
- Using Signature funds to pay the personal expense of the other Laurita family members,
- Causing the diverted funds to be conveyed away from Signature to Pyramid Trading Inc. (another Laurita company),
- Making other fraudulent transfers to other Laurita companies, and
- Conveying the Rocawear and Artful Dodger Licenses to a third party while retaining for themselves a percentage of the gross fees received from those licenses.
Utilizing their position in Signature and the Laurita Pyramid Companies, Chris and Joseph, in concert with one another, have wrongfully utilized and depleted the corporate assets of Signature to further their own individual financial interests, in total disregard of the interests of Signature.
- From 9/5/2008 – 8/18/2009, within a year prior to the petition date, Joseph Laurita received a total of $873,689 in transfers of interests in Signature’s property.
- From 9/5/2008 – 8/14/2009, within a year prior to the petition date, Christopher Laurita received a total of $405,730 in transfers of interests in Signature’s property.
Chris and Joseph, in concert with one another, have wrongfully siphoned corporate funds from Signature which resulted in Signature becoming grossly undercapitalized to the point of financial extinction, while amassing personal assets for themselves and their family members.
To this day, Chris and Joseph, while claiming the financial crises of Signature, still drive luxurious vehicles, own buildings and residences and have assets which may be worth millions of dollars.
Signature was so controlled and dominated by Chris and Joseph, and its separate legal existence so ignored, that Signature primarily transacted the personal business of Chris and Joseph, and is therefore a mere instrumentality and the alter ego of Chris and Joseph.
Such control and domination has been exercised to commit fraud and engage in other wrongful conduct, which has resulted in an unjust financial loss and injury to Plaintiff.
As a matter of equity, the Plaintiff (Signature Apparel LLC) is entitled to pierce the corporate veil of the other Laurita companies, and to reach the assets of Chris and Joseph, jointly and severally, to satisfy any judgment obtained in this litigation.
Joseph Laurita and Christopher Laurita, defendants in the case and each 50% owner/member of Signature Apparel LLC (which was formed in 2005), are accused of:
- Draining the company of all its funds and assets in order to support their families’ increasingly opulent lifestyle of private jets, limousines, extravagant parties, premium automobiles, designer clothing, ostentatious home furnishings and lavish vacations.
- Using company funds for their own personal expenses, and making payments to themselves and their family members from company funds for amounts not owed to them by Signature.
Also named as defendants in the case are Jacqueline Laurita, Adeline Laurita (Joseph’s wife), and Anthony Laurita (Chris and Joseph’s brother).
- Chris and Joseph directed Signature to pay the expenses of and make payments to other companies owned, controlled by or affiliated with Chris Laurita and Joseph Laurita.
- Chris and Joseph improperly directed Signature’s vendors, including certain of the petitioning creditors, to make payments to certain of the Laurita’s other companies of funds that were rightfully owed to Signature. Those payments totaled at least and no less than $718,214, and further depleted Signature’s assets.
- Chris and Joseph directed Signature to pay the personal expenses of, and make outright payments to the other Laurita family members (Jacqueline and other family members accepted funds they knew belonged to Signature and for which they each knew they had performed no services and/or provided no value). These payments totaled at least and no less than $7,086,013 (the “Fraudulent Transfers”). These improper payments have no legitimate business purpose, provided no value to Signature, and include:
* At least $1,994,845 for payments to 40 different credit cards for Laurita family members and the Laurita’s other companies
* At least $331,637 for payments on no less than eleven leased cars, including a Bentley and a Maserati
* At least $284,793 in airline travel expenses for the Laurita Family
* At least $145,894 for private airplane rentals for the Laurita Family
* At least $25,000 to Studio Dante, and off-Broadway theater company, for production expenses for the film ‘The Hungry Ghosts’
* At least $73,793 for taxi, limousine and car-service related expenses
* At least $16,951 for car rentals
* At least $5,813 in travel tolls
* At least $6,207 in car insurance premiums
* At least $28,711 for miscellaneous transportation-related expenses
* At least $7,280 for travel agent expenses for the Laurita Family
* At least $1,084 for train travel expenses
* At least $1,379,187 to Joseph Laurita for undocumented or insufficiently documented reasons
* At least $755,184 to Christopher Laurita for undocumented or insufficiently documented reasons
* At least $62,500 to Adeline Laurita for undocumented or insufficiently documented reasons
* At least $40,000 to Anthony Laurita for undocumented or insufficiently documented reasons
* At least $20,909 to Frank Laurita for undocumented or insufficiently documented reasons
* At least $4,860 for rent and utility expenses for 78 Valley Road in Connecticut, the site for Pyramid Trading (another Laurita company)
* At least $325,696 in payments to or on behalf of other entities owned or controlled the Lauritas
* At least $791,509 in payments to Roc Apparel Group LLC for undocumented or insufficiently documented reasons
* At least $784,160 of disbursements to unknown recipients, without any documentation whatsoever
These fraudulent transfers were made voluntarily with the actual intent to hinder, delay or defraud some or all of Signature’s then existing and/or future creditors (including, without limitation, the Petitioning Creditors — Signature Apparel, the plaintiff, will further amend the Complaint when additional information is obtained concerning other monies and property that were fraudulently transferred by or for the benefit of the Laurita family, the defendants, and Laurita Pyramid Companies).
Instead of being used to sustain and develop Signature’s business, pay Signature’s vendors and creditors, Signature’s assets were misused to make outright and unjustified payments to Laurita family members, and to fund the operations of the Laurita brothers’ other companies and business ventures. That diversion of funds constituted a waste of corporate assets and opportunities.
Chris and Joseph wrongfully caused Signature to make outright payments and other transfers to themselves, other Laurita family members, other Laurita companies, and to other companies and business ventures in which Chris and Joseph were investing. After Signature’s bankruptcy, Chris and Joseph conveyed the Licenses away from Signature while retaining for themselves a percentage of gross fees from the licenses, further damaging Signature and effectively rendering the Company an empty shell with no means to pay its creditors. This conduct caused the funds and property of Signature to be squandered, grossly mismanaged and wasted, and contributed to, exacerbated, deepened and/or caused Signature’s insolvency.
- Chris and Joseph breached their fiduciary duties by using Company funds for the payment of their own personal expenses and the personal expenses of other Laurita family members. Signature was damaged in an amount to be determined, but believed to be not less than $7,086,013 plus interest.
- Chris and Joseph breached their fiduciary duties by coordinating the transfer of the Rocawear License and the Artful Dodger Licenses to a third-party, as a new license, while retaining for themselves, rather than Signature, a percentage of the gross fees from the Licenses. As a direct and proximate result, Signature was damaged in an amount to be determined, but believed to be not less than $718,214 plus interest. That transfer provided Chris and Joseph with continuing income from the Rocawear and Artful Dodger Licenses, while reducing Signature to an empty shell with little or no means to pay its debts or continue its business.
Signature had a possessory right and interest to its assets, including its receipts, accounts receivable, property and general funds. Defendants converted Signature’s assets and property when they received monies in the form of payments and other wrongful transfers. Defendants actions deprived Signature of its use of its assets, and contributed to, exacerbated, deepened or caused Signature’s insolvency.
Signature and the other Laurita companies were grossly undercapitalized at their respective inception, and their respective assets were unreasonably small in proportion to their respective obligations.
Defendants Joseph Laurita and Christopher Laurita assert rights to payment allegedly owned by Signature. Pursuant to Bankruptcy Code section 502(d), the Joseph Laurita claim and the Christopher Laurita claim must each be disallowed unless and until such defendants pays Signature an amount equal to transfer made to such defendants that is avoided.
The actions of the defendants described in the Complaint, and as further to be proven upon discovery of additional facts, constitutes inequitable, unconscionable, and unfair conduct. Such inequitable, unconscionable, and unfair conduct of the defendants resulted in harm to Signature and its creditors and/or gave the defendants an unfair advantage over Signature’s other creditors.
- Joseph Laurita asserts that Signature is indebted to him in the amount of $5,337,414 in connection to unsecured loans (the “Joseph Laurita Loans”) allegedly made by him to Signature, as described in the Joseph Laurita claim.
- Christopher Laurita asserts that Signature is indebted to him in the amount of $3,387,414 in connection to unsecured loans (the “Christopher Laurita Loans”) allegedly made by him to Signature, as described in the Christopher Laurita claim.
The insider loans were each a sham, not true loans.
The insider loans represented the equity contributions of defendants Joseph and Christopher Laurita, each 50% owner/member of Signature. Neither Joseph nor Christopher are in the business of lending money, and there was no legitimate business reason for such Defendants to make such insider loans.
Although cast in the form of loans, the insider loans had the substance and character of an equity contribution: there were no arms’-length, good-faith commercial negotiation the terms of the insider loans; at all relevant times, Signature was not adequately capitalized to repay the insider loans; Signature had no ability to obtain comparable financing from a lending institution at the interest rate provided in the insider loans.
At all relevant times, Joseph and Christopher Laurita were insiders of Signature and exercised effective control over Signature. Through actual and effective control over Signature, overreaching and inequitable conduct, defendants Joseph and Christopher operated Signature in an undercapitalized, deceptive and unsound manner, to the detriment of Signature’s creditors.
If the insider loans are not recharacterized as equity, unsecured creditors will receive less than they otherwise would from monies recovered from defendants in this action and in other actions that have been or will be brought by or on behalf of Signature and its estate. Accordingly, the insider loans should be recharacterized as equity contributions in Signature.
Defendants Joseph Laurita and Christopher Laurita have filed the Joseph Laurita Claim and Christopher Laurita Claim (together, the “Proof of Claim”), respectively, in the bankruptcy proceeding. Defendants claims are not supported by the books and records of Signature, nor the materials annexed to the respective Proofs of Claim submitted by Defendants, and therefore should be allowed. As a result of the foregoing, Signature is entitled to an order disallowing the Claims.
About Signature Apparel LLC:
Signature was formed in 2005 by brothers Joseph and Christopher Laurita, as a privately-owned, multi-facted apparel company in the business of designing, manufacturing and distributing branded apparel worldwide. Joseph and Christopher Laurita each owned 50% percent of the Company.
In or about 2005, Signature entered into an exclusive license with a predecessor-in-interest of Iconix Brand Group, Inc. to design, manufacture and distribute junior’s apparel bearing the “Rocawear” trademarks, which license was assigned in or about 2007 to Studio IP Holdings LLC, a subsidiary of Iconix.
In or about 2005, Signature entered into an exclusive license with a subsidiary of Iconix, Artful Holdings LLC, to design, manufacture and distribute apparel bearing the “Artful Dodger” trademarks.
In or about 2005, Signature designed, manufactured and distributed apparel pursuant to the Rocawear License and, beginning in or about 2007, Signature designed, manufactured and distributed apparel pursuant to the Artful Dodger License, and sold such apparel to Signature’s wholesale customers throughout the United States.
Signature achieved more than $250 million in sales from Rocawear and Artful Dodger branded apparel alone between 2005 and 2009.
About the Original Petition by Creditors and the Laurita Brother’s Claims:
U.S. Bankruptcy Court Southern District of New York (Manhattan)
Case No. 09-15378 (JMP)
Chapter 11
Signature Apparel Group, LLC, Involuntary Debtor (Plaintiff)
Joseph Laurita, Christopher Laurita, Adeline Laurita, Anthony Laurita and Jacqueline Laurita (Defendants)
Creditors of Signature Apparel Group LLC, which owns the Fetish trademark and holds the licenses for Rocawear Juniors and Artful Dodger, are looking to push the company into bankruptcy protection, court filings showed. – Reuters, September 4, 2009
On September 4, 2009 (the “Petition Date”), Hitch & Trail Inc., Talful Ltd., and Harvestway (China) Limited (the “Petitioning Creditors”) filed an involuntary petition against Signature in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York, seeking relief under chapter 7 of title 1 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code.
The three original petitioners in the bankruptcy case (other petitioners may have since been added) and the amount owed them:
- Hitch & Trail, Inc., NY NY; $3,556,793.18 (September 3, 2009)
- Talful Ltd, Hong Kong, China; owed $4,757,078,62 (September 3, 2009)
- Harvestway (China) Limited, Hong Kong, China; owed $6,465,464.50 (September 2, 2009)
Secured claims vs. unsecured claims:
- Class 1 Priority Non-Tax and Priority Tax Claim, scheduled claims $14,906.80 (CIT Group has since been paid in full)
- General Unsecured Claims: $28,676,703.13 (the Complaint may have since been amended with more petitioning creditors)
On November 9, 2009, the debtor filed its motion to convert the case to a case under chapter 11, and on November 12, 2009 the court granted the motion to convert.
On June 29, 2010, a chapter 11 plan of reorganization was confirmed, and Anthony Labrosciano was named the responsible person of Signature Apparel LLC (he is representing Signature Apparel as the Plaintiff against the Defendants Christopher Laurita, Joseph Laurita, Anthony Laurita, Adeline Laurita and Jacqueline Laurita).
On August 5, 2010, Signature Apparel Group, LLC went out of business.
Affadavit of Joseph Laurita, chairman of Signature Apparel Group
My brother Christopher Laurita and I are the two member of the debtor, each owning a 50% membership interest in the debtor. The debtor is a privately owned multi-faceted apparel company that designs, develops, manufactures, distributes and sells branded apparel worldwide.
Christopher Laurita, Officer and President, 2003 – present
Joseph Laurita, Chairman, 2003 – present
On January 4, 2010, Joseph Laurita filed a general unsecured claim against Signature in the amount of $5,337,414 on account of purported loans made by Joseph to Signature.
On January 5, 2010, Christopher Laurita filed a general unsecured claim against Signature in the amount of $3,387,414 on account of purported loans made by Christopher to Signature.
http://ia700401.us.archive.org/23/items/gov.uscourts.nysb.185141/gov.uscourts.nysb.185141.36.0.pdf
A list of the 20 largest unsecured creditors is attached as Exhibit ‘A’.
http://ia700401.us.archive.org/23/items/gov.uscourts.nysb.185141/gov.uscourts.nysb.185141.124.0.pdf
Note: If you copy all or part of this article, please clearly credit and link back to Fame-Whorgas since it took considerable time and effort to type out this information from the PDF file and then edit it down (the Complaint is about 3 times the size of this article), format it, and re-organize it for readability.
UPDATES ON THE BANKRUPTCY CASE:
Since the original complaint was filed (which I found online and included in this article), other creditors have come forward (but I don’t have access to the amended complaint). FRE (link above) has the updates on the case and the amount (which totals $55 million) creditors are claiming are owed to them by the Laurita brothers. Other creditors include:
- Susan G Komen Cancer Foundation $18,000
- Federal Express $14,300
- American Express $$83,000
- UPS $9,500
- Ikon Financial $95,000
- Artful Holdings, LLC $10,350,000
- Studio IP Holdings, LLC $20,700,000
- CitiGroup Commercial $200,000
- Daihwa $456,000
- Hitch & Trail, Inc. $3,699,000
- Putnam Leasing $444,000
- GiftTex: $96,000
- Talful, LTD $4,750,000
- Harvestway Ltd $5,051,000
Signature Apparel Computers & Server Recovered from Chris Laurita’s Possession (FRE)
Chris Laurita removed computers from the Signature Apparel offices. He claims the computers were removed so that the equipment could be used in his new business, New Star Group, LLC (the Company that promotes BLK). Chris disclosed that he was also in possession of a server originally belonging to Signature Apparel. The Memorandum of Law filed in support of the Motion painstakingly sets forth the number of times Chris Laurita, through counsel, insisted that all computers, hard drives, servers and electronic equipment remained at the Signature Apparel warehouse before Laurita finally admitted that he and his personal assistant absconded with the equipment.
The Latest on the Signature Apparel Force Bankruptcy, October 2014
These are just some highlights gleaned from the most recent 311-page document from the Signature Apparel bankruptcy lawsuit.
Gorgas Extract $500,000 in Equity in a Cash-out Refinance of Their Overpriced Home for Sale
Comments posted in a New York Post article published online in May 2011 about the Gorga’s not paying their bills:
“Hey Joe, you are the biggest a$$, pay us the money you owe us for installing your elevator!” – Stephen Ferrara, Asst. Sales Manager at Standard Elevator, July 18, 2011
“nice house I helped you build Pay me the money you owe me bigshot.” – Scott Roberts, student at University of South Carolina, June 27, 2011
On February 2, 2007, Joe Gorga purchased the lot at 8 Pond View Ct., Montville, NJ for $950,000 cash (which was profit from the 2006 sale of the first home Joe built — 149 Pulis Avenue, Franklin Lakes, NJ), and the deed was in his name only.
When he took out a construction loan on November 16, 2007, to build the mansion on the lot, he transferred the deed into both his and Melissa’s names (the interest rate on the loan was 9% and the loan was obtained by putting two properties up as collateral — 11 Mermaid Rd, Toms River and 489 Summer St. Paterson, NJ). This construction loan agreement on November 16, 2007 was for $2.25 million.
They modified the mortgage loan agreement beginning on July 1, 2009 (the mortgage note modification agreement lists their address as 35 Gravel Hill Road, Kinnelon NJ), converting the loan to a three year term period with 6.25% rate and monthly payment of $14, 842.56 until July 1, 2012, when the entire amount of this loan would have become due and payable (balloon payment).
They modified their mortgage for the second time on March 24, 2011 (principal now $2,185,199 with a 5% interest rate and a monthly payment of $11,829 until April 1, 2041) — the modification was necessary since the first modification would have expired on July 1, 2012, and the balloon payment would have been due had they not modified the loan.
On October 11, 2012, the Gorgas refinanced their mortgage for $500,000 more than they owed to extract equity from their home, most likely to pay down debt or make additional purchases — in other words, they received $500,000 cash back (less closing costs) at the close of the new loan by borrowing $2.68 million (the new loan amount) versus $2.18 million (the principal balance on the old loan).
On the cash-out refinance, the initial rate of 4.125% will change to an adjustable rate on November 1, 2019, and the adjustable rate may change on that day every 12th month thereafter. Before each change date, the new rate will be calculated by adding 4% to the current index. The rate at the first change will not be greater than 9.125% or less than 4%. Thereafter, adjustable interest rate will never be increased or decreased on any single change date by more than 2% from the rate of interest being paid for the proceeding 12 months. Interest rate will never be greater than 10.125%.
The amount they borrowed in their cash-out refinance on October 11, 2012, would have been limited to 90% of the home’s value, which means that if the Gorga’s borrowed the maximum amount allowed, their home is valued at approximately $3 million, yet they have it on the market for $3.8 million, which is why is hasn’t sold — it’s overpriced.
“Why don’t you pay your bills… you have to borrow money every week from people.” – Joe Gorga to Joe Gorga during part 3 of the season 4 reunion special
Are the Gorga’s broke, borrowing money from people every week just to pay their bills, like Joe Giudice said at the season 4 reunion? Someone asked Kim D on Twitter, “Do Joe and Melissa live close to Tre? Why are they selling their house?, to which Kim replied: “They’re broke.” Here are more tweets from Kim D about the Gorga’s finances:
“Joe and Melissa, you r broke. Don’t get it twisted. ahhh Joe Gorga wanted to shut me up as soon as I came out. He knows I know too much to mess with me. All the feuds stem from business. QUESTION OF THE NIGHT: what # is bigger, the # of cupcakes you’ve made, eaten, or the # of $$ Melissa Gorga owes to the Gov’t? Melissa Gorga ‘s PSE&G was turned off 4 3 days. Idiot. Melissa Gorga you’re poor, you’re a sleaze, your world goes around, so long as you’re on your knees. For the last time!!! Teresa Giudice had NO clue about what I was doing. PERIOD!” – Tweets from Kim D (@KimDPosche), during the premiere of part 3 of the reunion special
“Honey. U r as broke as they come. It seems like u have as much trouble shutting ur mouth as u do ur legs. Not in ur skillset. @melissagorga” – Kim D (@KimDPosche), September 29, 2012, Twitter
“Melissa Gorga’s checks bounce more than she does. Scary. That’s why she needs a store as in debt as she is to afford the stripper costumes.” – Kim D (@KimDPosche), September 29, 2012, Twitter
“Melissa Gorga, you’re poor, you’re a sleaze, your world goes around, so long as you’re on your knees.’ – Kim D (@KimDPosche), October 14, 2012, Twitter
Joe tweeted some photos (see below) of a home he has under construction and the ‘haunted house’ that he is converting into condos. Could the house he is building be Melissa’s new dream ‘spec’ home? Joe and Melissa told Us Weekly on May 22, 2012 and Reality Aired on May 12, 2012:
“I’m a builder. I custom-built the houses we have lived in and will do the same with our next one,” Joe tells Us Weekly exclusively. “We tried Montville, but it just wasn’t for us. We want to go back to Franklin Lakes, which is closer to where I work, and we’re looking at a couple of properties now.”
“Wait till you see the next house I build,” he tells Us.
“I absolutely love our current house and will be sad to leave, but Joe is an incredible builder, so I have no doubt that I’ll love the next house just as much. Although this is the last time he is getting me to pack-up!”, said Melissa.
“We gave Montville a try and want to move back to Franklin Lakes before the kids reach an age where they will all be in school. When we sell our house in Montville, we will move into a rental while Joe custom builds our next house. Joe is a builder and a businessman. He will sell pretty much any property for the right price and build again bigger and better.”
Joe Gorga’s purchases of investment properties since 2008 have been under the company name ’10 Courtland Street LLC.’ They are as follows (in season 4 episode 2, Joe pointed out the various buildings he owns on a city block, saying he put each under his children’s names — but that doesn’t appear to be the case):
May 16, 2008
Construction Loan Mortgage
$3.5 million
Granted to 10 Courtland Street LLC; Guiseppe Gorga
To undertake the development, construction, equipping and furnishing of construction of the renovation of a former storage building into a 58-unit residential building.
Property Address(es):
10-18 Courtland Street, Paterson, NJ
132-136 Barclay Street, Paterson, NJ
Instrument Type MORTGAGE
Instrument# 2008033271
Date Recorded 06/04/2008
Book/Page M9888/33
Mortgagor 10 COURTLAND STREET LLC; GORGA GUISEPPE
Mortgagee BCB COMMUNITY BANK
Block/Lot N/A/
Township PATERSON CITY
July 1, 2009
Commercial Mortgage
$6 million
Granted to 10 Courtland Street LLC; Guiseppe Gorga
Property Address(es):
10-28 Courtland Street, Paterson, NJ
17-25 Camden Street, Paterson, NJ
27-33 Leslie Street, Paterson, NJ
Instrument Type MORTGAGE
Instrument# 2009038533
Date Recorded 07/20/2009
Book/Page M10511/209
Mortgagor 10 COURTLAND STREET LLC; GORGA GIUSEPPE
Mortgagee BOILING SPRINGS SAVINGS BANK
Block/Lot N/A/
Township PATERSON CITY
March 18, 2010
Mortgage
$3.71 million
Granted to 10 Courtland Street LLC; Guiseppe Gorga
Property Address(es):
10-28 Courtland Street, Paterson, NJ
17-25 Camden Street, Paterson, NJ
27-33 Leslie Street, Paterson, NJ
132-136 Barclay Street, Paterson, NJ
Instrument Type MORTGAGE
Instrument# 2010016202
Date Recorded 04/12/2010
Book/Page M10906/223
Mortgagor 10 COURTLAND STREET LLC; GORGA GIUSEPPE
Mortgagee BOILING SPRINGS SAVINGS BANK
Block/Lot N/A/
Township PATERSON CITY
Related:
- Is Joe Gorga Broke and Facing Bankruptcy?; Does He Really Pay His Bills?; Why Are the Gorgas Selling Their Homes?; Joe Gorga Has a Negative Net Worth of $1.5 Million
- Melissa Gorga’s ‘I Just Wanna’ Music Video; Melissa May Have Sold Out Her Husband’s Family for Less Than $20,000 from iTunes Sales of Her Songs
- Melissa Gorga Was Arrested for ‘Retail Theft’ in Florida in 1997
- 2009 Tax Sale of Gorga’s Property on a Municipal Lien for Non Payment of Water/Sewer Fees
Cancun and the Real Story of How Joe and Melissa Gorga Met
AllAboutTRH EXCLUSIVE: Jan DeDolce Explains Her Falling Out With Melissa, Exposes The Melissa She Knows!
AllAboutTRH EXCLUSIVE: Jan DeDolce Explains Her Falling Out With Melissa, Exposes The Melissa She Knows!
There must be a lascivious story behind how Joe and Melissa Gorga met in Cancun in March 2003 because they’ve fabricated an unbelievable story about how Joe didn’t approach her in Cancun even though he said to his best friend, “that’s my wife”, when he first saw her there at the pool. She and Joe deny actually interacting in Cancun, which doesn’t ring true, and they both overacted during the season 4 reunion when the topic of how they met in Cancun was brought up. They are hiding something about what happened when they first met there. They both say they officially met later in the summer of 2003 at a Jersey Shore club and Joe said, “you’re the girl from the pool” in Cancun and “he remembered how my hair was.” I think the Greeks (Penny Drossos and Johnny Karagiorgis) and others know the real Cancun story (apparently with photos to back it up) and are waiting to expose it on camera in season 5, if given the chance.
“Melissa Gorga, Yea long lost fuck of joe gorga back in Cancun! Don’t make me break out the Picts….. Actually @frankabba has em on a cd.” – Pete Giudice, September 19, 2012, Twitter
During part 2 of the season 4 reunion, when discussing the gold-digger accusation, this was the exchange between Teresa Giudice and Melissa Gorga:
Teresa: This is what happened. She dated my brother’s best friend.
Melissa: What! Woe, woe, woe! Excuse me!
Teresa: She never wanted anything to do with him [Teresa’s brother]. She knew him back in Cancun days.
Melissa puts her hand on Teresa’s upper arm and pushes her back while screaming: What are you talking about?! Say it to me! Say it to me.
Teresa: Get your hands off of me. Do not touch me. I’ll press charges right now.
More yelling from Melissa, which makes what everyone is saying inaudible.
Melissa: I never married him for money. Ever, ever, ever! We fell in love. Because that didn’t happen for you doesn’t mean it didn’t happen for me. You wish that my life was like your life and everyone can see it now, and you hate that. She’s sitting here talking about my husband, my marriage, how we met. It’s all bullshit. She’s lying! She’s lying! (Andy tries to interject and change the topic.) This is not fair. I don’t even want (Andy is still trying to interject). I’m not going to fight anymore because everything’s a lie!
During part 3 of the season 4 reunion, out of nowhere Joe Giudice asks Melissa Gorga:
Juicy: How did you really met Joe Gorga?
Joey, enraged, screams: Shut the f–k up about my f–king wife!
Penny Drossos tweeted on September 19, 2012:
51 cards n 51 witness’s …
John Karagiorgis tweeted on September 19, 2012:
Do you really want to get ugly @melissagorga @joegorga ? @PDKhair is holding cards & there’s 51 more cards in deck! Wanna play?
So the real story of how they met in Cancun is obviously a subject that the Gorgas don’t want discussed, especially on camera.
Note: Included in my blog, ‘Melissa Gorga: Lookers’ Dancer Wearing the Cross in 2003, Gold-digger and Cheater?‘, are comments I collected over the past year from people who allegedly knew Melissa before she married Joe. It’s an interesting read.
The photo above of Melissa Gorga from NJGuido.com was taken at Club Deko (Club Deko is now Ikon Lounge) in Sayreville, NJ, on April 12, 2003, and was sent to Fame-Whorgas by Dilettante (@AutumnLeaves61). Melissa’s bridesmaid Jan Marie DeDolce is the other woman in the photo.
The photo was taken a month after Joe Gorga first met Melissa Marco, if you believe Joe’s story of when they met, which would have been during Spring Break in Cancun March 2003 (and the same time MTV was taping ‘The Real Cancun’) when Melissa was 24; Melissa stated it was when she was 21, but she’s obviously lying.
Joe told Ryan Seacrest that he first saw Melissa during Spring Break in Cancun (when she was 24, which would have been March 2003), but he claims that he didn’t speak to her (even though he said to himself ‘that’s my wife). He said that he randomly ran into her six months later in a club at the Jersey shore, which would have been around October 2003.
In June 2011, Joe and Melissa told Ryan Seacrest:
“I was in Cancun. I was sitting in the pool and I had a girl on the right and a girl on the left. They were fighting over me. Kissing one, kissing the other one. As I was doing the turn, I saw this girl across the pool, curly hair, leopard bikini, sunglasses. I look over to my best friend while I’m holding these two girls and say ‘that’s my wife’.” However, they did not even speak while in Cancun. It wasn’t until they got back to New Jersey that they randomly met. “We were out, we were down at a beach club and he came up to me and said ‘you’re the girl form the pool,’ he was persistent. It took him a couple of times, I didn’t give him my number right a way,” Melissa says. “He freaked me out a bit, he told me what I had on, the hotel I was at, the sunglasses I had on, he remembered how my hair was.”
A year later, in July 2012, Melissa described their first encounter to Examiner.com. She stated that she first met Joe when she was 21, which would have been 2000 and not 2003; however, her timeline doesn’t make sense, so she has to be lying about her age at the time they met (she probably lied to cover up the fact that Joe Gorga was 28 and well beyond the age for partying with college kids during Spring Break). During the interview with Examiner.com, she also said they met again back in New Jersey in the summer:
“Originally we saw each other on Spring Break in Cancun, we were so young! I was there for my 21st birthday and he was 25 and everyone from New York and New Jersey would always go to Cancun for Spring Break. We were both there and he was there with his friends and he says that I went walking by with my girlfriends and my bikini, and he remembers everything that I was wearing like it was yesterday. He pointed to me and said, ‘That’s going to be my wife’. His best friend that was with him confirmed this story all the time, so that was kind of the first time we met unofficially. Then we were back in New Jersey in the summer at a Beach Club and he saw me and it just went from there.”
In May 2011, Melissa told a similar story to NorthJersey.com but didn’t give her age or the year they met:
Their paths first crossed during a spring break in Cancún. “He saw me … and he looked at his best friend and said, ‘That’s gonna be my wife’,” says Gorga, who adds that when they ran into each other back in Jersey, “he came over to me and said, ‘I saw you in your leopard bikini in Cancún.’ I said, ‘Well, why didn’t you talk to me?’ He said, ‘Well, you didn’t look like you wanted to talk.’ And it went from there.”
In her most recent rendition of their love story, in April 2012, Melissa said Joe Gorga used to come see her when she was a bartender at Lookers Gentleman’s Club while in college. According to a ‘pay register ’ that she released in December 2011, she worked at Lookers the entire 2003 calendar year.
Here’s how she describes the early stages of their relationship, when she was 24 years old:
“It was one of those things that we went out on a first date and we saw each other every day after. We both just knew, we were at the age when we were ready to settle down. I was graduating college and he was 28 and he was done partying, so it was a good time for us really. It was instant, we were engaged six months after we met and we were married four months later, so within a year we were married. It was one of the things where I think a lot of people wait because when you’re younger you don’t have the money for the house or the wedding, but we were fortunate in that regard and it just worked for us.”
Here’s an excerpt from Melissa’s Bravo blog, “Like a Prayer”, where she gives another story about how they met:
“I think a big misconception about me and Joe is that we got married and were just rich and had everything we could ever want. Not true. When I first met Joe and for the first few years we were married, he owned a landscaping company. We did well for two newlyweds in our 20s, but nothing like we are now. We worked for it together.
From the day we got engaged, Joe asked me to work in his office as his secretary and suggested not going into the school system to be a teacher. I had just graduated college and really wanted my own classroom. I did go to a teachers’ fair and got hired as a teacher, but after discussing it with Joe, I decided not to take the job and to work with him in his office. Joe felt like with me backing him up rather than have a stranger running things, we would make the business more successful.
Well Joe was right. I worked in that office 9 to 5 Monday through Friday and did it. Even when Antonia was born, I used to bring her and all her toys to the office and I would work all day with her there. It wasn’t always easy. There were times (like the one you heard me remind Joe of) that we couldn’t even buy diapers when Gino was first born. 2008 was definitely a hard year. We had invested in real estate and the market went sour. I’m sure everyone remembers that and is still feeling the effects of the economy.
Joe and I are gamblers, and I mean that in a good way. We take chances and sometimes we win and sometimes we lose, but as long as we have our two hands and each other, we can always get back on top, and that’s what we did.”
In season 3 episode 6, Joe tells the the story of how they met in Cancun, and he says she was working three jobs at the time and explains how he promised her he’d put her on a pedestal. Melissa had her boob job in the photo above, at age 24, as a college student, studying to be a teacher. In season 4 episode 20, Melissa says she was a second-grade teacher when she was bartending at Lookers in 2003. However, in her April 2012 she told Examiner.com that she was in college (she didn’t graduate from college until January 2004 — see photo below of her college diploma, which she tweeted on September 24, 2012) when Joe visited her while she was working at Lookers (which, according to her pay register, was in 2003). During part 3 of the season 4 reunion special, Joe Gorga said Melissa was a teacher when he met her and in the next breath says she was in college when her met her. So their story is falling apart because they can’t keep their lies straight.
“My college degree;.) #rhonj http://t.co/kFtzK3yc” – Melissa Gorga, September 24, 2012, Twitter
Why would a 24-year-old working her way through college to become a elementary school teacher need, or have the money to pay for, a boob job unless someone helped her out, like maybe her bosses at Lookers (and why would they pay for them unless there was something in it for them)?
“I was blessed with a pretty sexy ass, so I wear short shorts to tease: ‘I know you want me, but stay over there’.” – Melissa Gorga, season 4 episode 6
Timeline from season 3 episode 6, etc.:
She moved to Florida with her mother and had a lesbian relationship as a 16-year-old in 1995, she was arrested for ‘retail theft’ at age 18 in Florida in 1997, she graduated from Boca Raton High School in 1998, she moved back to New Jersey sometime after 1998, she started dating Joe in October 2003, she moved in with him in December 2003, she graduated from New Jersey City University in January 2004, and she married Joe in August 2004.
TRANSCRIPT of Melissa Gorga admitting she LIED about being a teacher and was never a teacher PLUS VIDEO:
From the August 2011 MyFox video (when asked about what she was doing before being on RHONJ):
“I was a stay at home mom, I went to school to become a teacher, I never actually went and got the job, I graduated and got engaged all at the same time and my husband wanted me to run his business for him.”
From the season 4 finale at the Posche Fashion Show (taped on September 27, 2011):
Melissa: “First of all I was a school teacher, it’s very different from being a dancer. When your brother met me I was a school teacher do you understand that?”
Teresa: “No, you were going to college.”
Melissa: “And I was teaching second grade.”
Video of Fox Good Day New York (6 minutes into video — it is the LAST one posted on the blog link):
http://stoopidhousewives.com/2012/09/28/real-housewives-of-new-jersey-10-things-from-taping-the-rhonj-reunion-show
Source for Photo:
Photo: NJGuido.com
Website URL http://www.nlsociety.com
TheMoo, AMoussa, NLSociety.com Founder and Creator, Member Since 13 Jan 2003
The NLSociety.com has a forum where in 2003 members were discussing the Lookers’ dancer wearing the cross:
http://www.nlsociety.com/forum/index.php/topic/16869-lookers/
[Warning: some of the language is crude]
I copied some of that 2003 discussion about the “Lookers’ dancer wearing the cross” (which sounds like Melissa) here:
https://famewhorgas.wordpress.com/2012/09/09/melissa-gorga-lookers-dancer-wearing-the-cross-in-2003/
So let’s summarize: NJGuido.com has photos of Melissa partying in 2003, and that site also runs the NLSociety.com forum where in 2003 members were discussing the hot Catholic-girl dancers at Lookers and the dancer with fake boobs and wearing a cross.
For another photo of Melissa Marco at NJGuido.com, posted April 7, 2003, click on the link below (photo labeled, “This pinned topic is for you to share who or what picture is hot for the week. Hotties of the week”):
http://www.njguido.com/forum/index.php/topic/2833-hotties-of-the-week-weekly-pic-post/
To quote Melissa:
“I think there are far too many ‘kawinkydinks’ and the writing is on the wall.”
Related:
- ‘Tommy the Greek’ from Marlboro, NJ, is the Man That Melissa Gorga Wanted
“You have pulled Teresa and Joe away from each other by manipulating his own thinking. When is enough enough? You were nothing more then a simple girl who wore imitation clothing to try to fit in or always wore the pink fuzzy sweater everywhere you went. You targeted only men with money and did anything for them to gain their acceptance. You ‘stalked’ Tommy the Greek from Marlboro, NJ, and did whatever he wished even though you knew he was using you. You even went to the extreme of following him in nightclub bathrooms. His family didn’t except (sic) you and you ‘settled’ for Joe because of the home he lived in. Joe comes from a proud Italian, old fashioned family with morals and values. But you managed to manipulate his mind and because his family is supportive, you were excepted (sic).”“You were nothing more then a handoff from Joe’s friends, wasn’t he third in line? Love at first sight my ass. Yea he saw you in Cancun while his and your friends had ‘fun’ from the very first day, but you wanted nothing to do with him until he caught up with you at Lookers with one of his friends you were actually going out with. Another joke. F*cking hand me down. Then you found out he had money and you went on the prawl. Shall I continue? Nah, I’ll save it for when Penny gets on the show and one at a time we’ll be getting our hair done by Penny and Robert and exposing everything. Oh, you remember Robert don’t you? Lol, Season 5 will be interesting.” - Melissa Gorga “Settled” for Joe
“Yes you met him on spring break, but you didn’t give him the time of day and said he was too short and not your type. Joe was persistent though, I’ll give him that. Once you saw he was a hard working man with money in his pocket, nice home, and can easily manipulate him, you locked him in.” - Real Housewives of New Jersey Melissa Gorga’s Ex Was a Girl Who Reveals Melissa’s Lesbian Past!
- Is Joe Gorga Gay, Does He ‘Swim in the Man Pond?’; Is Melissa Gorga a Closet Lesbian?
- Melissa Marco was arrested on July 16, 1997 for “retail theft” in Palm Beach County, Florida
http://rhocomix.wordpress.com/2012/10/10/melissa-gorga-the-disappearing-truth-part-1/
FAMEWHORGAS 