“My Unorthodox Life” star Julia Haart has launched legal action against her estranged husband, Silvio Scaglia, but his attorneys believe she could be the one facing criminal charges for allegedly using company funds.
Haart, 50, filed a petition Friday in which she alleged that Scaglia, 63, ignored “proper corporate governance” in firing her as CEO of Elite World Group and demanded to have a “custodian” put in place at the company to protect her interests.
The Netflix personality also claimed in court documents that Scaglia had “sought to ride the coattails of her celebrity and business savvy.”
Meanwhile, a source familiar with the situation exclusively told Page Six that new Elite CEO Paolo Barbieri is carrying out an investigation into the company’s finances now that Scaglia is suing his estranged wife for allegedly “illegally” withdrawing $850,000 from a joint account, adding: “Anyone reading Mr. Scaglia’s complaint filed against Ms. Haart personally will know that the legal word alleged in the complaint is ‘misappropriation.’ That means, in layperson terms, ‘theft.'”
The source indicated that Scaglia’s attorneys are “showing interest” in bringing the matter to the Manhattan district attorney.
Scaglia’s spokesperson, meanwhile, told Page Six, “We are not going to respond to the multiple falsehoods and baseless personal smears in Ms. Haart’s Delaware lawsuit except to put faith in the court to determine the facts and the law.
“We will note, however, that it seems Ms. Haart has not taken the time to read the company’s governing documents as to who owns the stock that controls the company.”
The rep continued: “We note, however, that this baseless action cannot divert attention from the suit filed last week in New York Supreme Court by Mr. Scaglia, which demands return by Ms. Haart of the $850,000 cash by wire transfer that Ms. Haart illegally, without notice or authority, caused to be transferred from the company to her personal company. We will have more to say in the future about the need for Ms. Haart to be held legally accountable for such allegedly illegal misappropriation of company funds.”
Page Six broke the news that Haart had filed for divorce last Wednesday — hours after being fired from Elite, the model management business that she co-owns with Scaglia — and then filed for a restraining order against him.
The new legal filing, seen by Page Six, described Haart as “the public face and creative force behind EWG,” saying its “business enormously benefits from her prominent media profile.”
It also alleged Haart had refused to allow Scaglia to sell off Elite and their $65 million Tribeca apartment so he could raise cash to fund his new business venture, SHS Asset Management, and that he had a “history of failed investments.”
“Without authority and for no reason other than a personal vendetta, Scaglia told Elite’s holding company Freedom Holding to dismiss Haart, block access to her office and cut off her corporate credit cards as well as access to Freedom’s bank account,” the filing read.
According to the court documents, Scaglia has shut off phone service to the marital home and fired Haart’s assistants.
The filing claimed a custodian is necessary “as every day that goes by is causing further harm” to the company.
Haart’s legal filing also alleged that Scaglia, whom she wed in June 2019, withdrew $850,000 from their joint account to put divorce lawyers on retainer — the same account he is suing her for allegedly taking out.
Former staffers told us that Haart spent a “fortune” on designer clothing and five-star travel. However, in her latest filing, Haart claimed that Scaglia had signed off on all bills as company chairman and that she did not take an annual salary but received a management fee in the amount of 2 percent of Elite’s revenues. She also claimed Scaglia was a big spender.
Haart’s attorney Marty Singer told Page Six: “The claims against Julia Haart are not based in fact and an attempt for Sylvio Scaglia to take the attention off of his own history of failed investments. In fact, the company still owned by Scaglia that has any value is the company that was run by Haart, who took over the operations of the business and as a result its valuation has increased over five times from $90 million to $500 million.
“The account that is the basis of a lawsuit is a jointly owned account, and the same account that Mr. Scaglia used to pay his own divorce lawyers.”
Scaglia, meanwhile, told us: “We have great confidence in the leadership that the new CEO of Elite World Group (EWG), Mr. Paolo Barbieri, currently the Deputy Chairman of EWG, can bring to our company. Paolo’s professionalism, his experience in the fashion industry, and his maturity and stability are just what the company needs. I am grateful and delighted that Paolo has agreed to take on this assignment.
“I can also say with confidence that the business foundations of Elite World Group are solid and the company’s future is bright. The events of my personal life have no relation to and no impact on the health of our business and our dedication to the talented individuals we represent.”
