Tiger Woods’ girlfriend withdraws lawsuits, clarifies she never alleged sexual harassment.
FILE – On the 18th green at Adare Manor in Limerick, Ireland, during the JP McManus Pro-Am on July 4, 2022, Tiger Woods is seen with his girlfriend Erica Herman. Recently, Herman has withdrawn a $30 million lawsuit against the golf legend. (AP Photo/Peter Morrison)
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. (AP) — The former girlfriend of Tiger Woods has withdrawn her lawsuits against the golf icon and the trust managing his Florida mansion, clarifying that she never alleged sexual harassment despite such claims being made by her attorney.
Last week, Erica Herman’s attorney submitted a brief notice in state court indicating that she is voluntarily dismissing her $30 million lawsuit against the trust “with prejudice,” which prevents any future legal assertion of the claim. Previously, she alleged that Woods had promised her residency at his 30,000-square-foot beachfront mansion until 2026 but unexpectedly evicted her last year.
In dismissing this case, Erica Herman declared that she was never subjected to sexual harassment or abuse by Tiger Woods or any of his representatives. She maintains that she has never made such a claim,” wrote attorney Benjamin Hodas, who had previously asserted multiple times that Woods sexually harassed his client.
In May, a judge dismissed a separate lawsuit against Woods. According to court records, an appeal of this decision was abandoned earlier this week. There is no indication in the court documents that a settlement was reached for either lawsuit, although it is possible that one may have been settled privately.
Hodas did not respond to a call or email requesting comment on Thursday, while Woods’ attorney, J.B. Murray, chose not to provide any comments.
Herman was in a relationship with Woods from 2015 until October 2022, having moved into his $54 million mansion just north of Palm Beach in 2016. During the initial years of their romance and before that, she managed his restaurant located in Palm Beach County. In 2017, she signed a nondisclosure agreement which prohibited her from publicly discussing their relationship and stipulated that any legal disputes between them be resolved through private arbitration instead of going to court.
In a May court hearing, Hodas asserted that Herman couldn’t recall signing the document and argued that if she did sign it, it was under pressure due to being threatened with termination from the restaurant.
Hodas claimed that the nondisclosure agreement was not enforceable due to a recent federal law allowing such contracts to be nullified in cases involving sexual abuse or harassment. He argued that Woods’ alleged threat of termination constituted harassment.
“A boss altering work conditions for an employee due to their sexual relationship constitutes sexual harassment,” Hodas stated in a May filing.
In May, Circuit Judge Elizabeth Metzger dismissed Herman’s effort to nullify the nondisclosure agreement, describing her claims as “vague and lacking substance.”
“Herman has been given the chance to provide detailed facts for any claims of sexual assault or harassment, but she has not done so,” wrote Metzger.
According to Forbes Magazine, Woods’ net worth is estimated at $1.1 billion. In 2017, he transferred ownership of the mansion into the Jupiter Island Irrevocable Homestead Trust—an entity he established with only himself and his two children as beneficiaries.
