Laura Overdeck, the estranged wife of New Jersey billionaire John Overdeck, once accused her son's fencing coach of being her husband's mistress, according to allegations in a lawsuit that has since been dismissed. Laura Overdeck, 56, allegedly identified Lauren Phillips, 40, as her husband's 'paramour' and cited her as the reason for the marriage's collapse, Phillips claimed in court papers filed in 2024.
Phillips, who had taught one of the Overdecks' three children for five years, alleged that Laura Overdeck told others that she was "the reason for the breakup" of the couple's marriage. These accusations have resurfaced as John and Laura Overdeck are engaged in what is considered the largest contested divorce in New Jersey history, with billions of dollars at stake.
Laura Overdeck is seeking a portion of her estranged husband's stake in the hedge fund Two Sigma, which her lawyers have valued at up to $6.2 billion. She previously rejected a settlement offer of approximately $633 million. John Overdeck, 56, whose net worth Forbes estimates at $8 billion, testified that his settlement proposal was "fair and equitable" and sufficient to support his wife.
Phillips' lawsuit, filed in Essex County Superior Court on Christmas Eve 2024, alleged that Laura Overdeck repeatedly made damaging statements about the fencing instructor to clients, friends, and business associates. The suit claimed Laura Overdeck not only portrayed Phillips as the woman who had ruined her marriage but also accused her of being a criminal who "threatens people with real knives."
Phillips asserted that these statements threatened her personal reputation and the standing of her fencing academy in Millburn, New Jersey. The lawsuit stated that the narrative painted by Laura Overdeck served to "smear Ms. Phillips and avoid potential media embarrassment resulting from Defendant's high-profile divorce." A judge later dismissed Phillips' lawsuit for failure to prosecute.
Phillips is a former fencer for Rutgers University and has two decades of experience as an instructor. Her lawsuit noted that pupils she coached had secured prestigious fencing scholarships and competed in the Olympics. One of the Overdecks' children trained at Phillips' academy for five years.
Some accusations detailed in Phillips' lawsuit appear to echo claims made nearly a year earlier, when police responded to a disturbance at the Overdecks' Short Hills home. Body-camera footage from that incident shows an unidentified woman speaking with officers. Both John and Laura Overdeck spoke separately with police about the woman.
Laura Overdeck told officers, "He's got a psycho girlfriend, and he's got to get out," and accused the woman of holding her own family at knifepoint. John Overdeck acknowledged to police that he was in a "dating" relationship with the woman, but insisted it had never been sexual and that they had never removed their clothes.
The identity of the woman in the police footage was not definitively established, but the Post noted that several of Laura Overdeck's claims mirrored allegations Phillips later attributed to her.
The divorce proceedings also involve disputes over the valuation and marital status of John Overdeck's stake in Two Sigma. He co-founded the quantitative hedge fund with David Siegel before marrying Laura in 2002. John's attorneys argue that his stake should not be treated as a marital asset because the company existed and managed substantial assets before the marriage. Laura's legal team contends that Two Sigma was merely a concept before the wedding and began trading afterward. The fund's assets grew from managing less than $1 billion in 2001 to approximately $80 billion currently, according to John Overdeck's testimony. Laura is seeking 35 percent of the value of John's interest, which her attorneys place at about $6.2 billion, while his side calculates it at approximately $4.9 billion. A significant award for Laura could rank their divorce among the most expensive in U.S. history.