Jes Staley will have to face claims that he misled JPMorgan Chase about his relationship with Jeffrey Epstein after a New York judge denied the banker’s attempt to dismiss a lawsuit brought by his former employer.
The 66-year-old, who spent more than 30 years at JPMorgan, was sued by the bank in March, which sought to make him liable for any damages awarded in two separate claims over its decision to retain Epstein as a client for 15 years.
Those lawsuits against JPMorgan were filed towards the end of last year, one by an unnamed Epstein accuser, and the other by the US Virgin Islands, where the disgraced financier had a home. They allege that JPMorgan benefited from human trafficking by ignoring multiple internal red flags about Epstein’s arrest and subsequent charge for soliciting a minor in Florida.
The Epstein accuser said she was raped by Staley, and that Staley witnessed her being abused by Epstein — claims that Staley has strongly denied.
JPMorgan said that if such allegations were true, Staley, who was for a period Epstein’s private banker, failed to comply with his fiduciary duties. The bank is also attempting to claw back some of Staley’s pay from his time at JPMorgan. Staley has described the allegations as “slanderous” and “baseless but serious”.
Staley’s lawyers did not immediately respond to a request for comment. JPMorgan declined to comment.
Last week, the bank said in a statement: “Staley is accused of unspeakable acts that are the foundation of the claims against the bank. If true, he is accountable for any harm done not just to the bank, but to these women.”
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