Lawmakers Subpoena Leon Black Over Epstein Payments
WASHINGTON — The House Oversight Committee served two subpoenas to billionaire investor Leon Black on Friday after he refused to answer questions about non-disclosure agreements (NDAs) during a closed-door voluntary interview, escalating the congressional investigation into Jeffrey Epstein’s financial network.
Black, the co-founder and former CEO of Apollo Global Management, appeared voluntarily before the committee but declined to discuss the terms and substance of NDAs he had allegedly signed with women connected to Epstein. The interview lasted approximately one hour before committee chairman Rep. James Comer (R-Ky.) issued subpoenas compelling Black to appear for a deposition under oath on July 16 and to produce the NDAs in question.
“This is a result of refusing to answer specific questions,” Comer told reporters after the interview, as reported by AP News. “Answers about the terms and substance of these NDAs are critical to our investigation.”
The Core Dispute
At the heart of the confrontation is whether Epstein — a convicted sex offender who died by suicide in 2019 while awaiting federal sex trafficking charges — was involved in drafting or funding NDAs between Black and women. Comer stated that the committee wants to know whether Epstein “was involved in the NDAs, whether he was involved in writing them, whether he was involved in awarding funds to the women.”
According to the House Oversight Committee, the first subpoena compels Black to appear for a deposition on July 16, while the second requires him to produce nondisclosure agreements to the committee.
Susan Estrich, Black’s attorney, dismissed the subpoenas as a “planned political stunt,” asserting that “Mr. Epstein had no involvement with any NDAs, whether they exist or not,” as The Guardian reported.
Rep. Robert Garcia (D-Calif.), the ranking Democrat on the committee, supported the subpoenas, telling reporters that “it was clear from the moment this interview started that Leon Black was not going to answer critical questions.”
Black’s Financial Ties to Epstein
Black paid Epstein between $158 million (per an Apollo-commissioned review by the law firm Dechert) and $170 million (per a Senate Finance Committee investigation) from 2012 to 2017 for tax and estate planning services — payments that continued years after Epstein pleaded guilty in 2008 to soliciting prostitution from a minor.
Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), who conducted a nearly four-year investigation into Black’s ties to Epstein, alleged that “Epstein even appears to have acted as a middleman for Black to pay women on Black’s behalf,” as Fortune reported. Wyden referred his findings to the House committee earlier this month.
Black broadly denied the allegations in his opening statement, calling them “rank speculation.” He maintained that he was not aware of Epstein’s criminal activities until 2019.
“I knew Jekyll. I didn’t know Hyde,” Black said, according to AP News. “I have never abused a woman. I have never been with an underage woman. I have never engaged in sex trafficking. I have never paid Epstein for access to women. I was never blackmailed by Epstein.”
Broader Investigation Context
Black is the 16th person to appear before the House Oversight Committee as part of its investigation into Epstein’s network, which gained momentum after the Department of Justice released millions of records related to Epstein late in 2025 and early 2026 under the Epstein Files Transparency Act.
Other high-profile figures who have testified include former President Bill Clinton, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, former Attorney General Pam Bondi, and Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates. Black told the committee that Epstein’s network also included SpaceX founder Elon Musk, Google co-founder Sergey Brin, and PayPal and Palantir co-founder Peter Thiel.
Democrats on the committee have pushed Republicans to seek testimony from President Donald Trump, who had a years-long relationship with Epstein. Republicans have declined, stating they have not found evidence that Trump did anything wrong.
What Comes Next
Black is scheduled to testify under oath on July 16, a deposition that Comer has described as potentially “the most groundbreaking” of the investigation so far. The central question remains whether Black’s payments to Epstein were for legitimate financial services, as Black claims, or whether Epstein served as a “fixer” who helped Black manage relationships with women and conceal payments through NDAs.
The outcome could have significant legal and political implications, potentially exposing new details about the inner workings of Epstein’s financial network and the extent of high-profile individuals’ involvement with him.