A proposed court ruling presented Thursday revealed that Jeffrey Epstein's estate had agreed to pay about $35 million to settle the pending lawsuits of dozens of potential victims of the American businessman convicted of sex crimes, in a scandal that affected a long list of leaders, politicians, and businessmen, led by Donald Trump and his wife Melania, Elon Musk, Bill Gates, and other well-known figures in the world of politics and business.
Published on: 02/20/2026 - 16:32
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Jeffrey Epstein's estate has agreed to pay nearly $35 million to settle pending lawsuits from dozens of potential victims of the American businessman convicted of sex crimes, a proposed ruling revealed Thursday.
These are women who reported that they were “sexually abused, exploited or trafficked by Jeffrey Epstein between January 1, 1995 and August 10, 2019,” which is when the financial expert committed suicide in prison while awaiting trial, according to the ruling.
The estate will pay $35 million if the number of eligible claimants is 40 or more, and $25 million if there are fewer than 40.
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Epstein's former lawyer, Darren Indyk, and his former accountant, Richard Kahn, are handling the settlement. Both have denied any wrongdoing through their relationship with Epstein, and no criminal charges have been brought against them.
Agreement does not mean admitting fault and responsibility
The ruling stated that the agreement does not mean that the settlement executors admit to wrongdoing or hold them responsible for any further legal actions on the part of the victims. The agreement must be approved by a federal judge in New York before it becomes final.
Bloomberg News reported Thursday that it is likely that there are at least 40 victims who have not yet reached a settlement with Epstein's estate.
The settlement came after the US Department of Justice published millions of documents, photos and videos related to the investigation into the case. The department's publication of millions of internal documents related to Epstein revealed his relationship with several prominent figures in politics, finance, academia and business, before and after his guilty plea in 2008 on charges related to prostitution, including soliciting a minor.
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The Ministry of Justice indicated that the materials may include fake images or false claims, in addition to pornographic material. US Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche said that these materials do not amount to being considered evidence that those mentioned in the files committed any sexual crimes.
Who are the most prominent figures who were connected to Epstein?
Epstein built a global network of powerful politicians, businessmen, academics and celebrities, many of whom had their reputations tarnished by their association with him.
Here are some of the prominent figures whose connections to Epstein were revealed in recently published documents:
Donald Trump
The US President had a close social relationship with Epstein during the 1990s and the beginning of the new millennium, and he was quoted in a newspaper interview at the time as saying that Epstein preferred “young” women.
The Justice Department documents include photos of Trump with several women whose faces are obscured, as well as a suggestive letter addressed to Epstein, surrounded by a simplified drawing of a naked woman, which appears to be signed by Trump.
Evidence and testimony presented in the 2021 trial of Epstein's partner, Ghilaine Maxwell, indicates that Trump traveled on Epstein's plane several times. The latter wrote in one of the emails that Trump “knew about the girls,” but it was not clear what that meant.
But the Republican president denied any knowledge of Epstein's crimes, and said he cut ties with him in the early 2000s, before Epstein pleaded guilty. Trump also denied any travel on Epstein's plane, indicating that the suggestive message was fake.
Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor
Authorities have arrested Prince Andrew and former Duke of York on suspicion of business breaches while holding public office, over his alleged sending of secret government documents to Epstein. The documents revealed that he sent reports to Epstein in 2010 about Vietnam, Singapore and other places he visited in his capacity as a British trade envoy.
Mountbatten-Windsor has already been stripped of his royal title and expelled from his palace due to his social and business ties to Epstein. He denied committing any wrongdoing, expressed his regret for his friendship, and confirmed that he had not witnessed the commission of any sexual crimes.
The former prince settled a civil lawsuit in 2022 brought by the late Virginia Giuffre, who accused him of sexually assaulting her when she was an underage teenager, and refused the Justice Department's requests to cooperate in multiple criminal investigations. The Ministry of Justice files include several photos of him with women whose faces have been hidden.
Bill Clinton
The former Democratic US president had social relations with Epstein and traveled on his plane several times in the early 2000s, after the end of his presidential term. Photos published by the Ministry of Justice show him swimming and taking pictures with women whose faces are hidden.
But Clinton denied any wrongdoing and expressed remorse for his past relationship with Epstein. He is scheduled to testify before a House committee in a closed session on February 27. Clinton described the Republican-led investigation as a partisan attempt to protect Trump.
Ward Lutnick
Emails showed that the current US Secretary of Commerce visited Epstein's private island for lunch in 2012, and invited him to a fundraiser in 2015 for Hillary Clinton, Trump's Democratic rival in the 2016 election.
This contradicts Lutnick's claim that he pledged not to "be in the same room" with Epstein after a 2005 incident in which Epstein offered him a massage table at his home and made a sexually suggestive comment.
Lutnick lived next door to Epstein in New York at the time. He told Congress that he "hardly had any connection with this person." The White House rejected calls for him to resign.
Elon Musk
The billionaire and Tesla CEO asked Epstein if he planned to hold any parties on his island in 2012, but he apparently decided not to visit. Epstein responded that "the proportion on my island" might make Musk's companion feel uncomfortable, without providing further details.
Elon Musk invited Epstein to visit him for drinks on another island a few days later, but it is unclear whether they actually met. Musk said on Saturday that he had communicated with Epstein a few times and had declined repeated invitations to visit the island or travel on the American convict's plane.
Peter Mandelson
British police say they are reviewing reports of alleged misconduct involving the veteran British politician, after the publication of emails indicating that he leaked to Epstein discussions about the possible sale of British assets and tax changes during the financial crisis, and that Epstein recorded payments to Mandelson or to a figure who was an associate of his at the time.
Mandelson was sacked as Britain's ambassador to the US a year ago following the emergence of a previous batch of emails revealing he described Epstein as his "best friend" and advised him to try to get early release from prison.
Mandelson apologized to Epstein's victims and denied any wrongdoing. The scandal represents the biggest challenge yet for Prime Minister Keir Starmer, who is facing calls to resign over his appointment of Mandelson. Three senior members of his government resigned.
Cathy Roemler
Goldman Sachs' top lawyer resigned after revelations that she accepted gifts from Epstein and provided him with public relations advice between 2014 and 2019. Roemler, a former White House adviser to Democratic President Barack Obama, says she dealt with Epstein as a defense attorney and was not aware of any ongoing criminal conduct.
Larry Summers
The former US Treasury Secretary and Harvard University president has traveled on Epstein's plane several times since 1998, meeting with him to discuss economics and business matters during his tenure as head of the prestigious school.
The two maintained their relationship until 2019, when emails revealed that Summers sought counseling about a romantic relationship. No evidence of wrongdoing has emerged, but Summers resigned from his positions at Harvard, OpenAI and other prominent institutions in November after the documents were made public. He said he was "deeply ashamed" of his actions, and that he would step down from his public commitments to "repair his relationships with the people closest to him."
Kevin Warsh
The name of Trump's nominee to head the Federal Reserve appeared in an email from a public relations official to Epstein that included a list of 43 names, including celebrities like Martha Stewart, who were heading to a Christmas party in 2010. But it was not clear whether Warsh knew Epstein or why the note was sent to him, and Warsh did not respond to a request for comment.
Melania Trump
The files include an email from 2002 from the US president's wife, Melania Trump, to Maxwell about a magazine article about Epstein. "You look amazing," he wrote in the message.
Bill Gates
The documents indicate that Gates and Epstein met repeatedly after Epstein's prison term to discuss expanding the Microsoft founder's charitable efforts. The documents include photos of Gates standing with women whose faces are blurred in the photos. He said the relationship was limited to charitable discussions, and that meeting him was a mistake.
Jes Staley
The name of the former JP Morgan and Barclays executive was mentioned among the list of participants in meetings hosted by Epstein. Court documents showed that Staley exchanged about 1,200 emails with Epstein between 2008 and 2012, some of which included discussions about Disney characters and photos of young women. Staley denied knowledge of Epstein's criminal activities.
The authorities banned any dealings by Staley with the British financial institutions sector, and JP Morgan filed a lawsuit against him, accusing him of concealing information about violations related to Epstein.
Peter Attia
The name of the Canadian-American doctor, who famously spoke about disease prevention and longevity, appears more than 1,700 times in the latest batch of documents released by the Department of Justice. Attia wrote on the platforms that he met Epstein seven or eight times at his home in New York City between 2014 and 2019, adding that he did not witness Epstein engaging in illegal activity or accompanying what appeared to be minors.
Brad Karp
The head of the famous Wall Street law firm Paul Weiss resigned after emails showed prolonged personal as well as business contact with Epstein until 2019.
Read also: Epstein scandal: Accusations of cover-up target Trump administration employees, led by the Attorney General
Those letters indicate that Karp several times attended dinner with Epstein and asked for his help in getting a job at Woody Allen's company. The company said Karp regretted his contact with Epstein and did not witness or participate in any wrongdoing.
Borg Prendi
The head of the World Economic Forum is under internal investigation after it was revealed that he attended dinners with Epstein in 2018 and 2019, and also exchanged emails with him. Brindi said he would not have participated if he had known about Epstein's criminal record.
France 24/AFP/Reuters
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