The Truth About 'RHOC' Star Vicki Gunvalson's Tarnishing Lawsuit

Summary

• Vicki Gunvalson faces financial elder abuse lawsuit, denies allegations and continues filming RHOC Season 18.
• Diane Field alleges Vicki took advantage of her wealth, leading to investments with unclear costs and benefits.
• Previous controversies include accusations of increasing premiums and involvement in ex-boyfriend's fake cancer scandal.

The Real Housewives of Orange County's Vicki Gunvalson is usually under fire while filming with the other Housewives, but this time, she's in some heat (and a lawsuit) with a client. Vicki is the founder and owner of Coto Insurance, an insurance and financial agency that focuses on services primarily aimed at older individuals. During Vicki's reign on RHOC, she constantly promoted her business and the lavish lifestyle she created by working hard. Unfortunately, her success led to a lawsuit.

Vicki and her legal team have responded to the claim while she's currently making a splash on Season 18. Despite the lawsuit, Vicki has been through worse allegations on Bravo.

Vicki Gunvalson Is Being Sued For Financial Elder Abuse

In August 2024, Page Six reported that Diane Field (74) was suing Vicki Gunvalson for "financial elder abuse, negligence, fraud," and more. Field filed the suit in Orange County's Superior Court of California back in May and alleges that Vicki and her business partner took advantage of her.

In the court documents, Page Six reported that Diane took over her family's financials after her husband, George, was injured in a bike accident. After meeting Vicki in 2019, she decided to trust her and Cotto Insurance with their family's $6 million fortune. Instead, she's alleging Vicki took advantage of her age and her wealth.

Vicki Gunvalson is known as the first original Housewife after being an original in the first city in The Real Housewives franchise.

• Diane originally had an annuity account where her money would sit untouched and grow. When she and her husband passed on in the future, the savings would then be given to their daughter.
• After meeting Vicki, Diane was encouraged to work with Cotto, where she was promised a “safer diversified plan” to lower her taxes and increase her benefits.
• Diane admitted to being easily persuaded by Vicki because of her husband's failing health and her cancer diagnosis.
• Vicki and her business partner allegedly encouraged Diane to invest in life insurance but never told her how much it would cost.
• Diane claims Cotto said it was a one-time payment of $300,000. However, she later found out it was an annual fee. The court docs say she felt the deal was “intentional, misleading, and false misrepresentation.”
• When Diane's husband passed away, Diane claimed Cotto Insurance pressured her to transfer his money into a different annuity account. Because of this, she paid another $300,000.
• The complaint said that Vicki's business decisions left her “[tying] up large sums of money for a long time that she may never be able to use, for maybe longer than she will live or will be too old to enjoy.”
• Further contracts and business decisions led Diane to pay Cotto Insurance multiple payments of $100,000 with no clarity on what it was for or how she would benefit.
• The misinformation and millions of dollars led Diane to file a suit against Vicki and Cotto Insurance for "elder financial abuse with malice, oppression, and fraud.”

Vicki and her legal team made a public statement, denying the allegations. “Victoria Gunvalson is a well-respected insurance broker with more than 34 years of experience. She has helped thousands of clients," her lawyer wrote.

Ms. Gunvalson vehemently denies each and every allegation of Diane Field’s Complaint against Ms. Gunvalson and Coto Insurance Services.

Vicki has been dating Michael Smith since 2022.

The statement stated that Vicki simply followed the direction of Diane's wishes. “Ms. Gunvalson followed the direction of her client, Diane Field, in placing the insurance products Ms. Field requested regarding the annuities and the life insurance policy.”

Unfortunately, this was not the first contention over Vicki's business practices and morals.

This Is Not The First Damming Allegation Against Vicki Gunvalson

Similarly to Diane Field's allegations against Vicki Gunvalson and Cotto Insurance, in 2019 an 82-year-old woman named Joan Lile claimed Cotto increased her premiums without seeing the benefits when her husband died.

That case was later dismissed with prejudice.

One of the biggest allegations Vicki was slapped with was during Season 10 of The Real Housewives of Orange County. At the time, Vicki was dating Brooks Ayers, a man who was just starting a cancer battle. The more information that came out about his diagnosis, however, the more suspicious it appeared.

The more questions the Housewives had about his diagnosis, the angrier Vicki became. She trusted Brooks had cancer and didn't understand why no one believed him.

Unfortunately, as the season continued, it appeared as though Vicki was in on the scheme and couldn't find a way out of it. The Housewives agreed that if Vicki knew about Brooks faking cancer, she would be as deleriously guilty as he was.

Vicki has been a part of 16 Seasons of RHOC

People did an exclusive with Brooks, where he admitted to forging paperwork and lying about having cancer.

Vicki spoke with Parade where she defended herself despite Brooks' lying. "He [lied] to me; I didn't do it to anybody–I'm the one that got taken advantage of and lied to. So for anybody to think otherwise, what did I gain?" She continued saying how much she lost from that relationship and that his lies were not her own.

Although Vicki has denied every lawsuit and cancer scandal thrown her way, she's still one of the most iconic Housewives in Real Housewives history. She continues to make headlines, famed one-liners, and funny scenes during her time on the series, despite the hardships thrown her way.