Leon Black, founder and former CEO of Apollo Global Management, has initiated legal action against the House Oversight Committee after refusing to comply with a subpoena to testify regarding his dealings with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. Rather than appearing before the panel on Thursday morning as scheduled, Black filed a civil suit in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, accusing the committee and its chairman, Republican Rep. James Comer of Kentucky, of exceeding their authority.
Black’s lawsuit characterizes the investigation as a “public fishing expedition” motivated by political gain rather than legitimate legislative purposes. The complaint argues that the committee’s actions violate the requirement that congressional inquiries serve a valid legislative function. Comer responded by labeling Black’s refusal to cooperate “unacceptable” and stated that panel members would deliberate on whether to pursue contempt charges.
“I don’t think I need to tell anyone in here how important of a witness Mr. Black is to this investigation,” Comer told reporters on Capitol Hill. He noted that Black is the first prominent individual interviewed by the panel to resort to litigation.
The subpoena specifically targeted any nondisclosure agreements (NDAs) to which Black might be a party. In his suit, Black claimed he had already produced the only confidentiality agreement in which Epstein could have been involved, arguing it was the sole document executed while Epstein was alive. Black asserted that complying with further NDA requests would expose the unredacted identities and private details of women who sought confidentiality.
An independent investigation commissioned by Apollo concluded that Black paid Epstein $158 million for tax, estate-planning, and other legitimate business activities. Black has consistently denied any knowledge of Epstein’s criminal conduct. During a voluntary appearance before the committee in June, Black ended the session after Comer raised the topic of NDAs. In that proceeding, Black reportedly stated he had never abused a woman, engaged in sex trafficking, paid Epstein for access to women, or been blackmailed by him.
Rep. Robert Garcia, D-California, the committee’s ranking member, called for Black to be held in contempt. Garcia highlighted accusations from multiple women alleging sexual assault by Black and criticized his lack of cooperation. “He funded Epstein’s abuse and trafficking of women,” Garcia said. “His connections to Epstein and his unwillingness to cooperate are unacceptable.”
Black’s name appears thousands of times in the Justice Department’s Epstein files. Earlier this year, Comer revealed that Richard Kahn, Epstein’s former accountant, testified that Black was one of five clients who paid money to Epstein. According to NPR, the other individuals on that list included Les Wexner, Steven Sinofsky, Glenn Dubin, and the Rothschild family.
The House Oversight Committee has questioned numerous high-profile figures in its probe into Epstein’s network, including Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, Bill Gates, Les Wexner, Bill and Hillary Clinton, and Epstein’s former associates Richard Kahn and Darren Indyke.
This legal maneuver feels like a delaying tactic. Congress needs real answers about Epstein’s network, not more lawsuits.
Wait, over $158 million? That’s an astronomical sum for just ‘tax advice.’ Something doesn’t add up here at all.
Does this mean he already produced the NDA he had? I thought that was the main sticking point in the congressional hearing.