What specific lawsuits against Jeffrey Epstein’s estate remained publicly pending after May 2023 and what were their outcomes?
Executive summary
After May 2023 most of the high‑profile bank-related claims tied to Jeffrey Epstein’s network had been resolved—Deutsche Bank and JPMorgan reached multimillion‑dollar settlements that largely closed those tracks of litigation [1] [2] [3]—but several civil suits directly targeting Epstein’s estate and his co‑executors remained publicly pending, including a Manhattan federal “aiding and abetting” suit against co‑executors Darren Indyke and Richard Kahn and long‑running litigation seeking to vacate Epstein’s 2008 federal plea deal [4] [5]. Reporting and court records indicate clear outcomes for the bank suits, while the estate‑centered lawsuits showed mixed and ongoing statuses with few final judgments publicly recorded as of the cited reporting [3] [4] [5].
1. Bank settlements that closed major third‑party tracks
By mid‑2023 the litigation stream that sought to hold banks accountable for enabling Epstein’s scheme largely concluded: JPMorgan agreed to a class‑settlement of about $290 million with survivors, which federal judges granted final approval, and Deutsche Bank separately settled for roughly $75 million [2] [3] [1]. Those settlements were presented as resolving claims that the banks kept Epstein as a client despite warning signs; judges approved sizable attorneys’ fees in connection with the JPMorgan deal [2] [3]. Those resolutions materially reduced the number of high‑profile defendants outside the estate and shifted attention back to claims against the estate and its handlers [3] [1].
2. The Manhattan federal “aiding and abetting” suit against Indyke and Kahn — stayed open
One of the most consequential suits remaining after May 2023 was a Manhattan federal lawsuit alleging that co‑executors Darren K. Indyke and Richard Kahn “aided and abetted” Epstein’s crimes; Wealth Management reporting identified that action as a key remaining claim that must be resolved before estate funds are placed into a trust [4]. That reporting frames the suit as one of the last legal holds on the estate, and it underscores why victims and observers remained focused on the estate administration — a final resolution of that litigation had not been publicly reported in the cited material [4].
3. Long‑running challenges tied to the 2008 plea deal and other civil suits
Beyond individual civil complaints, there are longstanding federal efforts to challenge the legal infrastructure that preceded Epstein’s 2019 indictment, including litigation aimed at vacating the 2008 federal plea agreement on grounds it violated victims’ rights; public summaries list such a long‑running federal case as pending [5]. Wikipedia’s litigation timeline and other contemporaneous reporting catalog numerous separate civil suits (Jane Does and others) filed against Epstein’s estate beginning in 2019; many proceeded through motions, consolidations, settlements, or remained active in federal and state dockets [5]. The sources do not provide comprehensive final outcomes for all these individual suits as of their reporting dates, leaving the overall disposition of many estate claims unresolved in the public record cited here [5].
4. Fragmented outcomes, executor incentives, and the information gap
Public reporting shows a bifurcated picture: outside defendants—major banks—paid large settlements that were publicly closed in 2023 [2] [3] [1], while litigation focused on the estate and the conduct of co‑executors persisted with more ambiguous public outcomes [4] [5]. Wealth Management noted concerns that co‑executors and close associates could benefit if outstanding claims were resolved in certain ways, highlighting an implicit tension between estate administration and survivors’ claims [4]. The sources reviewed do not provide a complete docket‑level accounting of every lawsuit remaining after May 2023 nor final judgments for many suits; therefore, definitive statements about every pending case’s ultimate outcome cannot be responsibly made from the cited material alone [4] [5].
5. What the record shows and what remains unknown
The public record in these sources makes clear that the major bank suits were settled and approved by courts by mid‑2023, materially diminishing that litigation vector [2] [3] [1]. It also documents that at least one significant Manhattan federal suit against the estate’s co‑executors remained open and that other long‑running federal challenges persisted, but it does not record their final judicial outcomes within the provided reporting window [4] [5]. Readers should note the reporting limitations: the sources document settlements and identify lingering suits, but they do not supply a comprehensive, up‑to‑date outcome list for every case post‑May 2023; further primary docket review would be required to produce that exhaustive accounting [4] [5].