A federal judge in New York has granted preliminary approval to a proposed $35 million Epstein estate settlement, marking a significant development in ongoing legal efforts tied to the late financier’s sex trafficking network.
On Tuesday, U.S. District Judge Arun Subramanian signed an order finding the agreement “fair, reasonable and adequate,” while scheduling a final approval hearing for September 16. The proposed settlement aims to resolve claims that two of Jeffrey Epstein’s longtime advisers knowingly enabled his abuse of women and underage girls.
The agreement, if finalized, would settle a February 2024 lawsuit filed against Epstein’s former lawyer, Darren Indyke, and his longtime accountant, Richard Kahn. Both men were named co-executors of Epstein’s estate in a will he signed just two days before his death in 2019 while awaiting federal trial in a New York jail.
According to court filings, victims alleged that Indyke and Kahn helped build and manage what the complaint described as “the complex financial infrastructure” that allowed Epstein to pay victims and recruiters in exchange for silence while ensuring he and his associates remained “richly compensated.”
The lawsuit further claimed that some victims were pressured into “arranged and forced sham marriages” to secure immigration status “so that they could continue to be available to Epstein for his abuse.”
The settlement covers all females who were sexually assaulted, abused, or trafficked by Epstein between January 1, 1995, and August 10, 2019, according to the preliminary approval filing.
In a statement to Reuters, Daniel H. Weiner, representing Indyke and Kahn, said the agreement would provide “a confidential avenue for financial relief” for Epstein victims who have not already resolved claims against the estate.
This proposed payout would come in addition to the compensation fund established by the Epstein estate in 2021, which allocated nearly $125 million to victims through a separate claims process. The estate fund was designed to resolve claims without prolonged litigation, though lawsuits against individuals connected to Epstein have continued in various courts.
