Erica Herman accused ex-boyfriend Tiger Woods of sexual harassment before their relationship began in new court documents obtained by Us Weekly.
The former restaurant manager, 39, claimed that the golf pro, 47, first sexually harassed her shortly after after she began working for his restaurant The Woods Jupiter in 2014, in court docs filed on Friday, May 5.
Herman’s attorneys went on to allege that Woods “forced her to sign an NDA” in 2017 or else she would “be fired from her job.” The athlete and Herman were already in a relationship at that point, but the lawyers pointed out in the filing that “a boss imposing different work conditions on his employee because of their sexual relationship is sexual harassment.”
The Florida native also claimed that Woods sexually harassed her again in 2022 when he allegedly kicked her out of their home. “The landlord made the availability of her housing conditional on her having sexual relationship with a co-tenant,” Herman’s lawyers wrote in the court filing. “That conduct amounts to sexual harassment under federal and Florida fair housing laws.”
Woods and Herman’s split became public knowledge in March. At the time, Us obtained court documents filed by Herman in which she attempted to nullify the NDA that Woods had her sign in 2017 when they started dating.
“Because of the aggressive use of the Woods NDA against her by the Defendant and the trust under his control, the Plaintiff is unsure whether she may disclose, among other things, facts giving rise to various legal claims she believes she has,” read the docs. “She is also currently unsure what other information about her own life she may discuss or with whom. There is therefore an active dispute between the Plaintiff and the Defendant for which the Plaintiff needs a clarifying declaration from the court.”
Herman also filed a $30 million lawsuit against her ex-boyfriend, claiming that Woods violated Florida’s Residential Landlord Tenant Act because they had an “oral tenancy agreement” that allowed her to live on his Florida property. (The lawsuit was originally filed in October 2022, hinting that their split occurred sometime last year.)
Woods, for his part, fired back in court docs of his own, denying Herman’s claim that they had any oral or written tenancy agreements. The four-time PGA champ’s legal team also slammed Herman’s citation of the Speak Out Act as reasoning for the former couple’s NDA to be nullified. The congressional act protects victims of sexual assault and harassment, but in her initial court filing, Herman did not explicitly accuse her ex-boyfriend of such behavior.
Earlier this year, an insider told Us that the duo had “a breakdown in their relationship” before their split. “Erica thought Tiger was never at home, and Tiger thought Erica was spending too much and living too lavish of a lifestyle,” the source explained, adding that the pair clashed “over time and money.”
The World Golf Hall of Famer has not publicly addressed the sexual harassment claims in Herman’s latest court filing. Last month, Woods was forced to withdraw from the Masters in the third round because of a previous injury.
“I am disappointed to have to [withdraw] this morning due to reaggravating my plantar fasciitis,” Woods tweeted in April. “Thank you to the fans and to @TheMasters who have shown me so much love and support. Good luck to the players today!”
In February 2021, Woods was hospitalized after a single-car accident that left him with multiple fractures in his right leg. Nine months later, the five-time Masters champion revealed that Herman was part of his rehab process, telling Golf Digest that his then-girlfriend would throw him things in the hospital so he could make sure his hands were working properly.
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Before his relationship with Herman, Woods was married to Elin Nordegren, with whom he shares daughter Sam, 15, and son Charlie, 14. The former couple called it quits in 2009 after Woods was caught cheating on the Swedish model, 43, with multiple women. The athlete sought treatment for sex addiction amid the scandal.
