Julia Haart’s Husband Fired Her As CEO Of Elite World Group

While cameras were rolling for Netflix’s My Unorthodox Life Season 2, star Julia Haart revealed that she and husband Silvio Scaglia were getting a divorce. “We are amazing business partners,” she explains, insisting that their split “doesn’t impact the business at all.” Fast-forward a bit and Julia announces that Silvio fired her as CEO of Elite World Group, which she describes as “the largest conglomerate of modeling agencies in the world.” Her estranged husband had shut off her email access, revoked her credit card authorization, and, as she puts it, “lost his frickin’ mind.”

Julia had no intention of letting go of the business without a fight, though, announcing that she wasn’t going to “fold and crumble.” She stayed true to her word. “He wasn’t allowed to fire me because we co-own the company together,” she claimed during an April 2022 appearance on Bravo’s Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen, adding that they’d “been planning the divorce for almost a year” when Silvio blindsided her with a pink slip.

However, Silvio’s legal team called Julia’s claims of co-ownership “false,” insisting that their client owns more than 99% of all voting shares of Elite World Group’s parent company, Freedom Holding, Inc. Silvio’s attorneys gave the following version of events in a March 2022 press statement, introducing their own allegations against Julia:

“On February 7, 2022, Ms. Haart was informed of her impending termination as CEO of EWG for cause, detailed in a letter from the company's Board of Directors. The very next day, on February 8, Ms. Haart transferred $850,000 without permission from Freedom's bank account to a company she solely owned. A lawsuit filed in New York's Supreme Court a few days later described this cash transfer as "illegal" and a "misappropriation" of company funds. On February 9, Ms. Haart was terminated and removed as a member of the Board of Directors of EWG.”

For her part, Julia denied her ex’s allegations that she abused her role as CEO. “It’s ridiculous,” she told Entertainment Tonight in April. “Honestly, what I can say, is these are genuinely ludicrous allegations. I've never taken a penny that doesn't belong to me, and the beauty of knowing the truth is you know the truth, and to me, it's just another battle that I have to face to fight for my freedom.”

In August 2022, the Delaware Court of Chancery ruled in Silvio’s favor on the ownership matter, deciding that Julia did not have rights to half of the company. “It is frustrating to see Silvio Scaglia’s empty words continue to bend reality,” her spokesperson said in a statement to Page Six. “He told everyone that Julia was a 50-50 partner, including bankers, investors, employees and Julia herself. He also avowed to their equally shared ownership stake in signed legal documents such as PPP loan applications and tax returns.”

Julia’s attorney said at the time that she would also appeal the decision, and as of December 2022, Julia’s Instagram bio still credits her as “co-owner” of Elite World Group.

On Dec. 14, Silvio dropped his lawsuit accusing Julia of allegedly misappropriating $850,000 in funds without prior authorization as part of a reported settlement, per TMZ. “I believe the fact that Silvio withdrew these cases with prejudice, meaning dismissed permanently, on the day discovery was due, speaks volumes,” Julia says in a statement via her representative. “No money was paid by me and I intend to continue to pursue my fraud and defamation litigation against Silvio and others named in those cases. Now my focus and priority is to heal through the strength and support of my family and to continue to build businesses that will empower others.”