Billionaire Investor Leon Black Defies Epstein Subpoena, Sues House Committee Over NDAs

Billionaire investor Leon Black has refused to appear for a subpoenaed Congressional deposition and sued the House Oversight Committee in a dramatic escalation of its Jeffrey Epstein investigation.

Black, the former CEO of Apollo Global Management, was due to appear for a deposition on Thursday but did not attend. Instead, he filed a lawsuit in federal court in Washington seeking to block two congressional subpoenas tied to the committee's probe of Epstein's network and the government's handling of the case.

The subpoenas were issued during a closed-door interview on 26 June, after Black refused to answer questions about nondisclosure agreements. One required him to produce NDAs, while the other compelled him to return for another deposition, which was ultimately scheduled for Thursday.

Fight Centres on NDAs

Black's attorneys argue the committee is demanding private agreements that they say have no connection to Epstein and fall outside the legitimate scope of its investigation.

'The Committee is on a fishing expedition that oversteps its authority,' attorney Susan Estrich said in a statement. 'This is no longer about finding the truth about Epstein. It is about trying to destroy Mr. Black.'

In the lawsuit, Black's legal team said the subpoenas exceed the committee's authority by seeking private information unrelated to any valid legislative purpose. The suit also argues that turning over the NDAs could expose women who have no public link to Epstein and who bargained for confidentiality.

His lawyers also wrote that Congress is not entitled to subpoena private documents merely in the hope that 'something useful might show up'.

Committee Accuses Him of Defiance

House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer criticised Black's decision to sue rather than appear. 'It's a shame Leon Black is hiding behind litigation rather than provide answers to the American people,' Comer said, adding that the deposition would move forward with 'an empty chair' for Black.

Rep. Robert Garcia, the top Democrat on the panel, called for Black to be held in contempt of Congress. 'By refusing to testify today, Leon Black is now defying two Congressional subpoenas,' Garcia said.

He also claimed Black had transferred more than $180 million (£133 million) to Epstein over six years and called his refusal to cooperate 'unacceptable'.

Black Denies Wrongdoing

Black has maintained that he was unaware of Epstein's broader sexual-abuse and trafficking activities, although he knew about Epstein's 2008 conviction involving a minor.

In remarks shared by his legal team after his June appearance, Black said he had no awareness of the criminal conduct that led to Epstein's 2019 arrest. His attorneys have said he never engaged in sex trafficking, never paid Epstein for access to women and was never blackmailed by him.

An outside review commissioned by Apollo previously found that Black paid Epstein $158 million between 2012 and 2017 for tax, estate-planning and other advisory services.

The review said it found no evidence that Black was involved in Epstein's criminal activities. Black stepped down as Apollo's chief executive in 2021.

Epstein Files Fight Intensifies

The lawsuit comes as pressure grows in Congress for more Epstein-related records to be released. Rep. Thomas Massie recently named Black among several people he described on the House floor as Epstein 'co-conspirators' who should be investigated.

Massie is also pushing the Epstein Files Transparency Act II, legislation that would allow victims, state attorneys general and members of Congress to sue the Justice Department over alleged failures to release records required under the original transparency law.

Being named by a lawmaker or appearing in Epstein-related records does not establish criminal wrongdoing. For the committee, Black's lawsuit challenges its authority to compel his testimony and production of the disputed NDAs as part of the Epstein investigation. Either way, the fight over his NDAs has become one of the sharpest clashes yet in Congress's renewed Epstein investigation.