Epstein probe hones in on billionaire kryptonite: non-disclosure agreements
Members of Congress believe that, like Donald Trump, Leon Black may have used NDAs to try and conceal illegal activity committed during his 30-year friendship with Epstein.
The top Republican overseeing the House investigation into Jeffrey Epstein’s criminal network issued a surprise subpoena on Friday after its recipient refused to answer questions about his use of non-disclosure agreements with women he had affairs with.
Leon Black was far from the first ultra-wealthy person of interest to willingly appear before the House Oversight Committee, only to be less than forthcoming about his association with Epstein. But while committee chair Rep. James Comer (R-KY) could excuse former Victoria’s Secret mogul Les Wexner’s chronic gullibility and the Epstein-shaped hole in Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick’s memory, his patience ran out when Black refused to address whether or not Epstein helped negotiate NDA terms between Black and women he had sexual relationships with.
“They didn’t have non-disclosure agreements, and this guy does, which means he’s paid women for — whatever reason,” Comer told COURIER. “According to some of the survivors, Epstein negotiated some of these NDAs. He negotiated the terms. Now, Mr. Black said in the transcribed interview — which if he’s lying to Congress, that’s a felony — he said that Epstein didn’t have anything to do with the NDAs. I don’t know if that’s factual or not, and a lot of people in the committee want to know for sure whether that’s true or not. So now I have subpoenaed the NDAs.”
The confidential nature and legal force of non-disclosure agreements has been abused for decades by people in positions of power to hide predatory and illegal behavior. Disgraced figures such as Harvey Weinstein and Larry Nassar coerced their victims into silence by tricking them into believing NDAs barred them from reporting crimes to law enforcement or speaking publicly about the abuse they endured.
Possibly the most prolific NDA manipulator is none other than President Donald Trump, who has used them excessively in both public and private life. Since returning to the White House, Trump has forced confidentiality agreements on federal workers, a mandate seen as an attempt to dissuade public servants from reporting illegal activity. In 2023, Trump settled a class-action lawsuit accusing his campaign of illegally using NDAs to silence allegations of sexual discrimination and workplace toxicity. And in 2024, Trump was convicted on 34 felony counts of falsifying business records, including a $130,000 hush money payout to adult film actress Stormy Daniels in exchange for an NDA regarding her sexual encounters with Trump.
Like Trump, Black was a longtime friend and associate of Epstein’s who used NDAs to guarantee silence from women he cheated on his wife with. Congressional investigators believe Epstein introduced Black to the practice and allegedly negotiated an $18 million NDA between the Wall Street billionaire and Russian model Guzel Ganieva. Ranking committee member Rep. Robert Garcia (D-CA), who was in the room when Black was subpoenaed, believes compelling his testimony is crucial to uncovering other accomplices and co-conspirators in Epstein’s criminal enterprise.
“We asked a bunch of questions about disclosure agreements — about women, about accusations, about some extramarital affairs that he has been open about —and he refused to answer those,” Garcia said. “When we pushed, that’s when he shut down and walked out — and he walked out because he doesn’t want to answer questions or be held accountable. He is at the center of this Epstein investigation. There’s credible evidence that points to abuse, and now he’ll have to come back under oath and answer our questions.”
As first reported by Business Insider, a recent court filing by Epstein’s convicted accomplice, Ghislaine Maxwell, revealed just how widely NDAs were used by clients of Epstein’s underage sex trafficking business. Maxwell claimed in December 2025 that she was not informed about NDAs some of Epstein’s victims signed at the behest of his clients — men Maxwell says she would have called in to testify as witnesses.
Maxwell learned about the existence of these NDAs from a podcast featuring Brad Edwards, a lawyer who represents her and Epstein’s victims. During the interview, Edwards said Epstein “lent out” 50 of his victims to at least 30 different men. Many of those women never spoke publicly about the abuse — and still haven’t — due to fear of repercussions from violating NDAs they had signed.
The subpoena Comer issued to Black could be the first crack in the NDA armor that has protected those implicated in Epstein’s criminal network. Black is now required to turn over every NDA he’s executed before sitting for his under-oath deposition on July 16. In addition to connecting Black’s secret relationships to Epstein, the subpoena could bring to light other confidentiality agreements he facilitated or embolden survivors to provide their own NDA agreements to Congress.
Should this provide the Oversight Committee with useful information, committee member Rep. Yassamin Ansari (D-AZ) said she hopes it will put an end to Comer’s reliance on voluntary interviews with potential Epstein accomplices and conspirators in what she believes constitutes an ongoing government cover-up led by the Trump administration. Administration officials Howard Lutnick and Pam Bondi have both spoken to the committee, but were not subpoenaed or under oath — approaches Black’s behavior seems to validate as necessary to obtaining a forthcoming testimony.
“I’m grateful that Chairman Comer decided to actually issue a real subpoena so that Leon Black has to come and testify in front of the American public,” said Ansari. “Every single one of these interviews should be a public hearing, should be in front of the American people so that everyone is able to see and hear the answers for themselves. This needs to be the new standard, and I hope Chairman Comer makes it as such.”
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