US billionaire Leon Black defies summons and sues Epstein panel
The lawsuit calls the House Oversight Committee's subpoenas, which ordered him to share nondisclosure agreements, "invalid".
US billionaire Leon Black ignores summons and sues Epstein panel
Billionaire investor Leon Black did not show up before a US congressional committee probing the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, and instead filed a lawsuit contesting the committee’s attempt to summon him.
The suit describes the House Oversight Committee’s subpoenas as "invalid" and says they bear "no legitimate connection" to the panel’s legislative purpose.
Lawmakers said Black walked out of the committee in June while providing voluntary testimony after being questioned about nondisclosure agreements (NDAs) he may have signed.
Black has denied any wrongdoing in connection with his dealings with Epstein.
The subpoenas, which required Black to turn over NDAs and give an on-camera deposition under oath, were issued after he left the committee session in June.
His lawsuit against the summonses, filed in federal court in Washington on Thursday, said disclosing the NDAs could "expose women who value their privacy, who have no known or public connection to Epstein, who bargained for confidentiality and have refused to release it".
NDAs are agreements in which both sides promise to keep information private, often as part of a settlement or employment deal.
"This is no longer about finding the truth about Epstein. It is about trying to destroy Mr Black," Susan Estrich, an attorney for Black, said in a press release on Thursday.
"We were left with no choice but to file this lawsuit in response to an abuse of Congressional power."
"By refusing to testify today, Leon Black is now defying two Congressional subpoenas," Robert Garcia, who sits on the committee, said in a statement after Black failed to appear.
"His connections to Epstein and his unwillingness to cooperate are unacceptable. We must hold him in contempt immediately," Garcia added.
Contempt of Congress could lead the committee to refer Black to the justice department for possible prosecution.
"It's a shame Leon Black is hiding behind litigation rather than provide answers to the American people," Chairman Jomes Comer said. "Mr Black's testimony is crucial to our investigation."
Black has said he hired Epstein as a wealth management adviser, telling the House Oversight Committee in June that he paid Epstein $158m (£120m) for legitimate reasons over the course of their years-long relationship.
He has said he did not know about Epstein's "nefarious activity until Epstein was charged with trafficking in July 2019".
Black appears in the Epstein files released by the justice department, which contain photos, videos and investigative documents tied to the disgraced late financier.
There is no suggestion that being named in the documents means any wrongdoing.
Black had a six-year affair with former Russian model Guzel Ganieva, which ended in allegations of abuse, court records show.
According to a lawsuit Ganieva filed against Black, later dismissed, he drafted a nondisclosure agreement in 2015 to keep her silent.
Epstein gave Black advice, including suggesting in an email to his assistant that Black hire former law enforcement officers to approach Ganieva, according to files released by the US justice department.
Estrich, Black's attorney, has called Ganieva's allegation "demonstrably false". Black has previously said he was the target of extortion.
A judge eventually dismissed Ganieva's lawsuit, pointing to the NDA she signed and about $9m (£6.6m) she received in the years after entering the agreement.
Black left Apollo Global Management, which he co-founded, in 2021, saying at the time that "relentless public attention and media scrutiny" over his ties to Epstein had taken "a toll" on his health.