Reuters ("Watch What Happens Live" host Andy Cohen.)
There’s nothing to be envious of here.
Melissa Gorga and Andy Cohen are being sued for $30 million by the “Real Housewives of New Jersey” star’s ex-business partner at the clothing boutique Envy, Jackie Beard Robinson, who claims the Bravolebrities made her look like a “felon” on TV.
Robinson is accusing the stars of defamation and intentional infliction of emotional distress.
TV personality Melissa Gorga arrives for the New York premiere of Tyler Perry's "Madea's Witness Protection" in New York June 25, 2012. REUTERS/Andrew Kelly (UNITED STATES - Tags: ENTERTAINMENT) - RTR345PG (REUTERS)
The ladies met in spring 2014 and decided to open the Montclair, NJ, store together in August 2015, according to documents Robinson filed in the US District Court for the Southern District of Florida on Wednesday. They signed an agreement naming Robinson the manager of the shop, Envy by Melissa Gorga, in October 2015, but their business relationship was severed by Dec. 31, 2016.
In the suit, Robinson claims she went to Envy to remove her belongings in “broad daylight” on Jan. 1, 2017 — after alleging that Gorga was “misappropriating over $37,000 from Envy without authorization” — but says Gorga claimed on TV that Robinson “snuck into Envy in the middle of the night and stole clothing.”
The allegations were repeated on “Watch What Happens Live” when Cohen asked Gorga: “Wow, so, that lady wound up kinda ripping you off?” per the suit. Gorga responded, “Yes.”
Robinson argued that the comments made her look like a felon, which hurt her business as “an entrepreneur and international fashion influencer.” She also identified herself as “a blogger and style consultant.”
NBCUniversal and Dorothy Toran, a production executive on “RHONJ,” are also listed in the suit.
Gorga’s rep did not immediately return our request for comment. A rep for Cohen did not get back to us, while a rep for “WWHL” had no comment.
Robinson told The New York Post she would provide written responses to our questions, but did not send them at the time of publication.
A Bravo spokesperson said “there is no merit to this lawsuit.”
This article originally appeared in the New York Post's Page Six.
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