Lawyers say up to 75 women sexually abused by Jeffrey Epstein since 2008 may be eligible for a $72.5 million fund, part of a settlement Bank of America reached with their legal representatives.
U.S. District Judge Jed S. Rakoff gave preliminary approval Thursday and scheduled a final hearing for Aug. 27. He also ordered lawyers to provide a comprehensive list of publications to notify victims, ensuring “nobody is left out.”
The lawsuit alleged that the bank ignored suspicious financial transactions linked to Epstein while he was abusing women and girls from 2008 until his 2019 arrest on federal sex trafficking charges.
Epstein died in a federal jail in August 2019 as he awaited trial on sex trafficking charges. His death was ruled a suicide. He was known for his connections with wealthy and powerful men, and the lawsuit said he used it to his advantage in his attacks on women.
The lawsuit, brought on behalf of a woman identified in court papers only as Jane Doe and “all others similarly situated,” said the woman was living in Russia when she met Epstein in 2011 and was “coerced into a cult-like life.”
It said she was paid by Epstein through a Bank of America account as she was controlled “financially, emotionally, and psychologically” by Epstein from 2011 through 2019 as he sexually abused her on at least 100 occasions, including raping her and forcing her to engage sexually with other women for his sexual gratification.
At the hearing Thursday, attorney David Boies said lawyers for the victims believed between 60 and 75 women will make claims that would make them eligible for payouts from the settlement fund.
He said “there may be more we haven't identified.”
Rakoff said that “while it’s perhaps extremely likely that the victims of Jeffrey Epstein’s monstrous acts can never be fully compensated, the victims are entitled to receive just compensation from any person or entity that knowingly, recklessly or otherwise unlawfully facilitated his sexual trafficking.”
In a statement, the bank said: "While we stand by our prior statements made in the filings in this case, including that Bank of America did not facilitate sex trafficking crimes, this resolution allows us to put this matter behind us and provides further closure for the plaintiffs.”
