The 15-time major champion has released a statement
Tiger Woods has described Erica Herman as a “jilted ex-girlfriend” as the legal battle between the pair continues.
Herman had requested to be removed from a non-disclosure agreement she claims the 15-time major champion made her sign when their relationship started, saying it was “invalid and unenforceable” and a trust controlled by Woods is wrongfully using it against her, citing the Speak Out Act, which prevents the use of an NDA in cases of sexual assault and harassment.
Herman is suing Woods’ trust for “actual, consequential and severe emotional damages” after she was persuaded to leave their shared home “by trickery” in October and “frightened away from returning”. She also claims more than $40,000 worth of her belongings were “misappropriated” when they were removed from the house in Jupiter, Florida.
Woods and Herman lived in the house for six years before their break up in October 2022.
According to The Times, Herman also claimed she performed “extensive” duties of an “extraordinary nature” as part of an “oral tenancy agreement” with Woods that allowed her the right to live at the property for five more years.
When asked if “this case involve[s] allegations of sexual abuse”, Herman replied: “Yes.”
In a statement, Woods, pictured above with Herman at the Presidents Cup, replied: “Try as it might, this court will not find a single reference to an allegation of sexual harassment or sexual assault – or even a reference to any federal, tribal, or state law relating to sexual harassment or sexual assault – when reading Ms Herman’s complaint.
“She has never asserted any claims for sexual assault or sexual harassment, does not do so in this landlord-tenant action, and, if she is truthful, can never do so.
“Ms Herman’s bare reference to the statute, without any allegations to support its application to the facts of this case, is insufficient to relieve Ms Herman from her contractual obligation to arbitrate. Rather, it is a transparent abuse of the judicial process that undermines the purpose of the federal statute and those whom the statute seeks to protect.
“Ms Herman is not a victim of sexual assault or abuse sought to be protected by Congress when enacting the statute. Rather, Ms Herman is a jilted ex-girlfriend who wants to publicly ligitate specious claims in court, rather than honour her commitment to arbitrate disputes in a confidential arbitration proceeding.”
Woods was in Augusta last week as he prepares for his next appearance at the Masters.
