NEW YORK (Reuters) – A U.S. judge rejected requests to sever JPMorgan Chase & Co’s lawsuit accusing former executive Jes Staley of concealing what he knew about Jeffrey Epstein from two related lawsuits over its work for the late sex offender. Monday’s decision by U.S. District Judge Jed Rakoff inManhattan is a defeat for Staley and Epstein accusers who aresuing the bank, where Epstein was a longtime client.
The U.S. Virgin Islands, where Epstein had a home, is also suing the largest U.S. bank. Staley had said the scheduled Oct. 23 trial left him toolittle time to defend against JPMorgan’s “slanderous”accusations, while the accusers said the bank’s motive for suingStaley was to “harass and intimidate” Epstein victims. Rakoff said Staley was a “prominent focus” of the accusers’and the U.S. Virgin Islands’ cases, and “it would make no sense”to try the bank’s case against him separately.
Brendan Sullivan, a lawyer for Staley, did not immediatelyrespond to requests for comment. Brad Edwards, a lawyer for the accusers, said in an email:”The decision is in accord with the law. The survivors werepresent are strong and will not cower to bullying by banks, sowe will continue to prove what is a very strong case.”
(Reporting by Jonathan Stempel in New York; editing by Jonathan Oatis)
