Private equity billionaire Leon Black exited a transcribed interview with the House Oversight Committee on June 26 after refusing to answer questions about nondisclosure agreements (NDAs) allegedly connected to Jeffrey Epstein. The transcript of the interview was released by the committee on Friday.
Black stated he was willing to discuss three women involved in lawsuits against him but repeatedly declined to address questions concerning the number of NDAs he was involved in, citing his attorneys' advice. "I'm not here to talk about confidential NDAs," Black said during the interview. "I'm not here to talk about who has NDAs."
Following his refusals, Black was issued two subpoenas: one compelling him to a deposition and another demanding the turnover of any NDAs. A spokesperson for the House Oversight Committee confirmed that Black's attorney indicated Black would attend a deposition on September 3, and that the NDAs would be provided the following week.
Black, who maintained a social relationship with Epstein since the mid-1990s and paid him over $170 million for "tax and estate planning advice," according to the Senate Finance Committee, appeared before the panel as part of its ongoing investigation into the government's handling of Epstein's case.
Black acknowledged discussing at least one NDA with Epstein, though he denied seeking Epstein's advice on the matter. He stated he agreed to pay a woman with whom he had a six-year affair after she allegedly "blackmailed and extorted" him, ultimately agreeing to payments exceeding $21 million over 15 years. Black said he informed Epstein of the agreement and payments because Epstein was managing his finances. "I don't know whether he had any experience on NDAs. He was not my NDA adviser," Black said of Epstein.
Black's legal team argued that he was not at liberty to discuss confidential agreements and characterized the subpoenas as a political stunt. "Mr. Black came here voluntarily to assist the committee. This was nothing more than a planned political stunt," said Black's attorney Aaron Cutler. "Mr. Epstein had no involvement with any NDAs, whether they exist or not."
Before the interview concluded, Black fielded questions about his relationship with Epstein. While Black stated he saw Epstein approximately once a month socially, he asserted they were not close friends. "Friendship is an amorphous term. This is somebody who knew intimately the goings on in my family tax and estate planning entities. It's also something where, as I mentioned, I'd go over and meet his friends. I know there are emails where he claims that we're best friends. We were never best friends," Black said.
Lawmakers pressed Black on his association with Epstein, referencing a message Black wrote for a book created by Epstein's associate Ghislaine Maxwell for Epstein's 50th birthday. The Wall Street Journal reported that Black wrote a poem that read: "Blonde, Red or Brunette, spread out geographically ... with this net of fish, Jeff's now 'The Old Man and The Sea'" and signed it "Love and kisses, Leon."
Black explained the note as a reference to Epstein's apparent connections with women globally, while denying knowledge of any underage women. "He enjoyed the company of good-looking women, and he was a bachelor," Black said, comparing Epstein's association with women to a "James Bond movie."
The interview was halted when the discussion turned to NDAs. Black had not yet been questioned about the more than $158 million he paid Epstein for tax and estate planning services. In his opening remarks, Black claimed that these payments resolved a "massive estate problem" that would have resulted in significant value loss, and denied any connection to illegal activities. "I have never paid Epstein for access to women. I was never blackmailed by Epstein. I was not involved with, and had no knowledge of, any of Epstein's heinous conduct," Black stated.