‘No. 1 Matchmaker’ Lined Up Zeros, Suit Says

Three former clients of marriage broker Orly Hadida filed suit Thursday against the self-proclaimed “No. 1 Matchmaker in the World,” claiming she failed to introduce them to the kind of single men they had requested.

In a civil lawsuit filed Thursday, Roxie Steele of Newport Beach, Leslie Kaplan of Woodland Hills and Elizabeth Donner, whose home town was unavailable, allege that Hadida’s company, “Orly Personal Touch Matchmaker,” introduced them to men who barely spoke English, were overweight, and earned less than the $500,000 annual salaries they desired.

In one case, the lawsuit contended, the man was married.

Hadida and her attorney, Daryl Hansen, could not be reached for comment Thursday. The matchmaker has offices in Newport Beach, Beverly Hills and other Southern California locations.

According to court documents, Steele hoped to meet men “who are professional, successful, fit, attractive, nonsmokers and marriage-minded.” Orly arranged a date with a man whom Steele liked a great deal, according to the suit.

But when Steele later discovered her new boyfriend was already married, she canceled her yearlong contract with Orly and demanded a refund of the $5,000 fee. Orly did not answer her demand, Steele alleged.

Kaplan and Donner lodged other complaints about their dates.

“Orly took the $5,000 payment and utterly failed to deliver on her part of the bargain,” the suit says.

The three women are suing for full refunds plus interest, along with general damages caused by “severe mental depression” resulting from the poor introductions.

Last month, a 72-year-old Fullerton woman settled her lawsuit against Hadida, whom she claimed had paired her with men “beyond life expectancy” or a generation younger than herself.

Ethel Ashley alleged that Orly failed to honor a one-year, $10,000 VIP contract to provide her with unlimited referrals to wealthy men. In five months, Ashley said she met only four men. All were either too young or too old and none of them earned enough money, she claimed.