A former girlfriend of Tiger Woods has filed a lawsuit against him.
Erica Herman, the former girlfriend of Tiger Woods, filed a lawsuit against the billionaire golfer on May 5, claiming that he threatened to terminate her employment in 2017 if she did not sign a non-disclosure agreement (NDA). Herman is seeking to nullify the NDA.
In the lawsuit, Herman claims that their sexual relationship began when she was employed by him, and he threatened to terminate her employment unless she signed an NDA. Woods’ attorney refutes the claims that his client sexually harassed or assaulted Herman and dismissed her allegations as baseless.
In August 2017, Herman, who was managing Woods’ restaurant in Palm Beach County at the time, expressed in an email to the Tiger Woods Ventures CFO her concerns about signing a non-disclosure agreement. She was primarily concerned about the possibility of losing her job at the restaurant if their relationship came to an end and losing the ability to control her future in the industry. Herman signed the NDA on August 9, 2017, two days after sending the email.
Herman’s lawyers filed the email along with other documents on Sunday ahead of the Tuesday hearing. Woods’ attorneys are planning to request the judge to dismiss Herman’s lawsuit against Woods because the NDA mandates that all disagreements be resolved privately through an arbitrator, rather than in court.
Under a new federal law that allows the nullification of contracts when sexual abuse or harassment has occurred, Herman is claiming that the NDA is unenforceable. She asserts that the alleged threat from Woods to dismiss her if she refused to sign the agreement amounted to harassment.
Herman has also filed a $30 million lawsuit against the trust that owns Woods’ mansion, alleging that Woods verbally promised in 2017 that she could reside there for a minimum of 11 years, but he expelled her after only five years. Woods’ lawyer dismissed Herman’s accusations, arguing that Woods never made any promise to her regarding a residence.
In her lawsuit, Herman is requesting the judge to nullify the NDA or provide her with instructions on what she is allowed to disclose publicly. She is also saying that the agreement applies only to her professional association with Woods and not to their personal affairs.
