U.S. District Judge Jed Rakoff expressed skepticism about lawsuits by Jeffrey Epstein's victims that name Bank of America and BNY Mellon, calling parts of the complaints conclusory and rhetorical. He gave plaintiffs two weeks to amend their filings, allowed use of discovery material already obtained, and temporarily paused new depositions and subpoenas. Rakoff noted the need for specific factual allegations and may rule—possibly by the end of January—after reviewing revised complaints.
Judge Questions Epstein Victims' Lawsuits Against Bank of America and BNY Mellon, Orders Revisions
Jeffrey Epstein flew private jetsUS Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York
U.S. District Judge Jed Rakoff signaled serious doubts about two lawsuits filed by victims of Jeffrey Epstein that accuse Bank of America and BNY Mellon of facilitating his sex‑trafficking operation. At a Manhattan hearing, Rakoff criticized the complaints as often conclusory and lacking the factual specificity required to survive a motion to dismiss.
Judge Seeks Clearer Allegations
Rakoff compared the complaints — filed in October by the same legal team — unfavorably to earlier suits he oversaw against JPMorgan Chase and Deutsche Bank, which resolved with settlements of $290 million and $75 million, respectively. He described the new filings as "a model of high‑pitched rhetoric," and said phrases such as "knows" and "affiliated" were used without explaining who or what those terms referred to.
"'Knows' without saying by whom is vague. 'Affiliated' without saying what that means is vague," Rakoff told lead plaintiffs' attorney David Boies, emphasizing that specific factual allegations are needed to survive dismissal.
Court Allows Limited Discovery Use, Pauses New Investigations
Rakoff gave the plaintiffs' lawyers — David Boies, Sigrid McCawley, Brad Edwards and Brittany Henderson — two weeks to amend their complaints with more concrete detail. He permitted the plaintiffs to rely on discovery material they have already obtained but ordered a temporary pause on additional depositions and subpoenas until the court rules, a decision Rakoff said could come by the end of January. He also indicated some discovery materials might be redacted before appearing on the public docket.
The suits allege that Bank of America and BNY Mellon provided banking services to Epstein and his associates while ignoring transactional red flags that should have alerted the banks to trafficking-related activity. Plaintiffs argue the institutions saw enough suspicious patterns in accounts tied to Epstein to warrant further investigation.
Defense Arguments
Attorneys for the banks pushed back. Charlotte Taylor of Jones Day, representing Bank of America, called the complaints "recycled boilerplate allegations" and said the filings show only that the bank provided routine banking services. Felicia Ellsworth of WilmerHale, representing BNY Mellon, argued the plaintiffs cannot show any employee at the bank had the requisite state of mind for legal liability.
Rakoff indicated the current pleadings likely fall short of the legal standard required to survive motions to dismiss, repeatedly stressing the need for specific factual allegations tying bank conduct to the alleged misconduct.
Background
Jeffrey Epstein, a financier with wide social and political connections, died by suicide in jail in 2019 while awaiting criminal sex‑trafficking trials. His longtime associate Ghislaine Maxwell is serving a 20‑year federal sentence for her role in recruiting and trafficking girls to him. Previous lawsuits against JPMorgan Chase and Deutsche Bank, which alleged similar failures, ended in significant settlements.
After the hearing, plaintiffs' counsel said they planned to amend the complaints using discovery material already gathered. "I think he's giving us a chance," Sigrid McCawley of Boies Schiller Flexner said, noting the team would refine the allegations to address the judge's concerns.
