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Nicholas accuses ex-wife of ‘outrageous falsehoods’

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Accusing his ex-wife of character assassination, Broadcom Corp. founder Henry T. Nicholas III said her attempt to oust him as co-trustee of their family holdings was filled with “outrageous falsehoods,” including misrepresenting herself as unable to meet her expenses when she had spent more than $100 million in the last two years.

Stacey Nicholas’ attorney, Adam Streisand, said he had not seen the filing in Orange County Superior Court and declined to comment.

In a filing in probate court Nov. 26, Stacey Nicholas said her ex-husband should be removed as a trustee for allegedly squandering $60 million from their fortune on personal indulgences, having her tailed by detectives wearing gorilla masks and threatening her life.

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In his response, filed Wednesday, Henry Nicholas asked the court’s probate division in Orange to reject her requests.

He argued that the proper venue for any such motion was divorce court, where the Nicholases have waged bitter battles over custody and assets and where the files have been sealed. Stacey Nicholas’ intent was to generate news coverage -- an aim accomplished in headlines saying Henry Nicholas wanted to have her “whacked” -- and not to fight a legitimate legal battle, the filing contended.

As for the alleged misrepresentations in Stacey Nicholas’ filings, the ex-husband said “just one example” was her portrayal of herself “as financially destitute and unable to meet her expenses.”

An attorney for Henry Nicholas, Emilio F. Gonzalez, said in a statement that his client “has consistently put the interests of his children first in this dispute, attempting to keep details which could be embarrassing to his former wife and hurtful to his children out of the public eye.”

Nicholas’ wealth stems from the success of Broadcom, the Irvine-based designer of computer chips used for communications, which he co-founded with Henry Samueli, owner of hockey’s Anaheim Ducks.

Nicholas faces prosecution on separate federal indictments alleging conspiracies to distribute drugs and to backdate billions of dollars in stock options as secret rewards for employees. He has pleaded not guilty in both cases.

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Samueli has pleaded guilty to lying to securities regulators about his role in the options award but will not be sentenced until after the backdating trial is concluded.

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scott.reckard@latimes.com

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