Judge warns JPMorgan Chase of contempt finding for slow-walking evidence in Jeffrey Epstein case

A New York federal choose warned JPMorgan Chase that he may discover the financial institution in contempt of court docket if it doesn’t pace up in producing proof associated to late sexual offender and cash supervisor Jeffrey Epstein for lawsuits by an Epstein accuser and the federal government of the U.S. Virgin Islands, CNBC has realized.

Choose Jed Rakoff instructed in a discover that JPMorgan and two legislation corporations representing the financial institution have been slow-walking in turning over paperwork and different proof to plaintiffs within the case, underneath a course of generally known as discovery, in response to a supply accustomed to the discover.

The discover comes two weeks earlier than JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon is scheduled to be questioned underneath oath by plaintiffs’ attorneys for the civil fits, which accuse his financial institution of enabling and benefiting from Epstein’s alleged intercourse trafficking of younger girls.

“The Court docket additionally needs to notice that it’s involved that JPMorgan is just not transferring extra expeditiously to provide responsive paperwork,” Rakoff wrote within the discover, which has but to seem on the general public docket within the case in U.S. District Court docket in Manhattan.

“Whereas the Court docket appreciates the massive quantity of discovery that’s to be accomplished on this case, an organization as giant as JPMorgan and counsel as skilled as WilmerHale and Massey & Gail ought to be capable to transfer with better pace than what was revealed by this incident,” the choose wrote, referring to the financial institution’s two legislation corporations.

“So JPMorgan is placed on discover that additional expedition might be wanted on ache of being put in contempt of Court docket,” Rakoff wrote.

A JPMorgan spokesperson had no touch upon the discover.

Epstein, who died from a jailhouse suicide in 2019 shortly after being arrested on federal youngster intercourse trafficking expenses, was a long-time buyer of the financial institution till 2013.

The lawsuits allege the financial institution allowed Epstein to stay a consumer regardless of proof he was utilizing tens of millions of {dollars} he stored on deposit to facilitate his trafficking of women and younger girls to his non-public island within the Virgin Islands and elsewhere.

5 years earlier than JPMorgan ended its buyer relationship with Epstein, he pleaded responsible in Florida state court docket to soliciting intercourse for cash from an underage woman and served 13 months in jail.

Earlier than his conviction, Epstein was associates with former presidents Donald Trump and Invoice Clinton, in addition to Prince Andrew of Britain.

JPMorgan denies any wrongdoing, and in its personal civil criticism the corporate has stated former financial institution government Jes Staley could be legally chargeable for any legal responsibility arising from its relationship with Epstein.

Staley spent three a long time at JPMorgan and had shut contact with Epstein — whom he thought-about a pal — over time when Epstein was a buyer.

Rakoff, in a court docket ruling printed in early Could, famous that “plaintiffs allege that Mr. Staley had first-hand information of Jeffrey Epstein’s sex-trafficking operation.”

“Mr. Staley is alleged to have visited Epstein’s residences a number of occasions whereas that operation was ongoing, and, throughout these visits, noticed [the Epstein accuser suing JPMorgan] ‘as a sexual trafficking and abuse sufferer,'” Rakoff famous.

“Plaintiffs additional allege that Mr. Staley himself abused a few of Epstein’s victims, together with” the lady suing the financial institution, the choose wrote. That girl claims that “‘one among Epstein’s associates’ — whom she later recognized as Mr. Staley — ‘used aggressive drive in his sexual assault of her and knowledgeable [her] that he had Epstein’s permission to do what he wished to her.'”

In his personal court docket submitting, Staley known as the accusations towards him “baseless,” and he has denied information of Epstein’s intercourse trafficking.

Staley stepped down as CEO of British banking large Barclays in late 2021 after an inquiry by a United Kingdom regulator into how he had characterised his relationship with Epstein to Barclays.

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