Tom Sandoval and Ariana Madix in legal battle over telephone privacy violation
Tom Sandoval and Ariana Madix, whose relationship fell apart after a shocking ‘Scandoval’ cheating scandal last year, are now locked in a legal battle. The Vanderpump Rules star filed a lawsuit against her ex, accusing her of breach of privacy. He claims Ariana accessed explicit videos on his phone featuring him and her former co-star Raquel Leviss, all without his consent. The explosive lawsuit further alleges that she not only viewed them but potentially shared them as well.
Tom Sandoval and Ariana Madix
Fans first met Ariana on season 2 of Vanderpump Rules, which aired in November 2013. The blonde beauty was introduced as a new waitress at SUR restaurant, but she was no stranger to the Vanderpump Rules cast. She had previously worked alongside cast members Tom Sandoval and Scheana Shay at Lisa Vanderpump’s other Beverly Hills establishment, Villa Blanca.
Ariana’s close relationship with Tom Sandoval quickly became a topic of conversation among SUR staff when rumours began to circulate that the two were previously connected. Sandoval, who was dating Kristen Doute at the time, initially denied the rumours but later admitted that he and Ariana had kissed at a Las Vegas casino a few years ago.
Season 2 of Vanderpump Rules was so dizzying that Tom and Ariana couldn’t contain their kiss in Las Vegas for long. It was a little difficult to see Kristen as a woman scorned after her affair with Jax Taylor was exposed. At the season 2 reunion, which aired in February 2014, Tom and Ariana revealed that they had started dating after Tom broke up with Kristen.
Ariana and Tom’s relationship became official on Instagram that same month. Tom shared a photo of him and his new girlfriend spending quality time together in Northern California. Also read – Joe Manganiello disagrees with Sofia Vergara’s claim that they divorced over having kids
Kristen’s mission to wreak havoc on Sandoval’s life
Kristen’s only mission on Vanderpump Rules season 3 was to wreak as much havoc as she could in Sandoval’s life. Not only did she start dating Sandoval’s friend, James Kennedy, but she also devised a plan to surprise her ex with his past relationship.
In the season 3 episode, “Miami Vice,” Kristen showed up at SUR restaurant with a girl who alleged that she had slept with Sandoval in Miami after he started dating Ariana. Sandoval denied the claim and Ariana sided with her boyfriend. For years, the couple stuck to their story that Miami Girl was lying about the hookup, but during a May 2023 appearance on Watch What Happens Live, Ariana admitted that Tom had slept with Miami Girl and she covered it up.
Tom Sandoval and Ariana Madix celebrate 7 years together
In season 4, Ariana and Tom’s relationship went to the next level when they decided to move in together. Ariana agreed to move into Sandoval’s West Hollywood apartment that she previously shared with his ex-girlfriend Kristen.
In February 2019, the couple bought their dream home in Los Angeles. That same year, the couple published their cocktail book “Fancy Af Cocktails: Drink Recipes from a Couple of Professional Drinkers.” And in 2021 the couple celebrates their 7 years together.
Separation of Tom and Ariana
In early March 2023, news of Sandoval and Raquel’s romance broke, which surprised many fans. The video drama unfolded on the season 10 finale of Bravo’s Vanderpump Rules last year, when cameras again captured the aftermath of Madix, who had been dating Sandoval for nearly a decade, discovering photos of Leviss on her then-boyfriend phone. (Madix and Sandoval subsequently called it quits due to the affair, and Sandoval briefly dated Leviss until her separation in May 2023.)
Raquel Leviss sues Tom Sandoval and Ariana Madix for revenge porn
Leviss claimed the explicit video was made “illegally” without her knowledge or consent. Her lawyers sent a cease and desist letter to several VPR stars in 2023, as the video constituted a violation of California laws for “non-consensual pornography.”
The NSFW video has been part of the scandal since the news broke in March 2023. Several cast members suggested that Madix called off her nearly decade-long romance with Sandoval after finding a recording of an intimate FaceTime call between him and Leviss.
Tom Sandoval’s lawsuit against Madix
Sandoval’s lawsuit against Madix comes after Leviss filed her lawsuit against the exes on February 29, accusing them of eavesdropping, revenge porn and invasion of privacy. Tom Sandoval subsequently countersued Leviss in April, alleging that her filing was “a thinly veiled attempt to spread [Leviss’s] fame and rebrand herself as the victim.”
Later that month, Sandoval requested that Leviss’ lawsuit against him and Madix be dismissed or modified, according to court documents.
Meanwhile, Madix filed her countersuit against Leviss days later, alleging that Leviss sought to “punish” and “blame Ms. Madix for the negative reaction [she] received as a result of her affair.”
Madix’s lawyers argued that she found out about Sandoval and Leviss’ affair “in the worst way possible” when she discovered the video of them “having phone sex.” Madix was “devastated” and “immediately confronted” Sandoval about the issue and told her friends about the “betrayal,” according to the documents. However, Ella Madix claimed that she never shared “any of the videos she found” with anyone other than Leviss.