Schwarzenegger 'lied', says lawyer

California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger has been sued by a lawyer who claims he lied about the state of a mouldy mansion he sold her for nearly US$8 million ($11.3 million).

The former movie star and his Kennedy heiress wife, Maria Shriver, covered up the damage to the estate's pool and tennis court and also hid a mould problem in the house's film screening room, the lawsuit alleged.

Lawyer Susan Loggans claims the ultra-rich Schwarzeneggers minimised the damage to the house in the ritzy Los Angeles district of Pacific Palisades, which she bought from them in September.

Loggans is seeking a court order referring the dispute to an arbitrator.