The Real Housewives franchise has been riddled with scandals over the years, mostly stemming from cheating and friendship drama. However, the shows have also seen quite a bit of real-life legal troubles as well.
For example, the Real Housewives of New Jersey has followed Teresa Giudice and Joe Giudice as they faced their individual prison sentences after pleading guilty to fraud. We've also watched the drama between Bethenny Frankel and her ex-husband Jason Hoppy play out on the Real Housewives of New York as they battled for custody over their daughter, Brynn, and we even got insight into Danielle Staub's involvement with a major drug cartel in the '80s.
Needless to say, the Real Housewives series definitely do get real—sometimes a little too real—when it comes to the life-changing battles many of the stars have faced in court, subsequently playing out on our TV screens.
Check out the biggest legal scandals among the housewives below: