JPMorgan, Deutsche Bank seek dismissal of lawsuits by Epstein victims

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JPMorgan Chase and Deutsche Bank have requested a US judge to reject claims filed by women who accused late tycoon Jeffrey Epstein of sexual abuse, alleging that the banks allowed and ignored red flags about his sex trafficking.

In papers filed on Friday night in Manhattan federal court in New York, the banks stated that they did not participate in or benefit from their former client's sex trafficking and that the nameless women did not allege violations of federal anti-trafficking legislation.

The banks also claimed they had no duty to safeguard the women from Epstein and were not responsible for his misdeeds, necessitating claims to be dismissed under a new New York law that allows abuse victims to sue even if statutes of limitations had elapsed.

Both complaints seek class-action status as well as specific monetary damages. They were filed on November 24 by attorneys who have represented numerous Epstein accusers.

In August 2019, Epstein allegedly committed suicide in a Manhattan jail cell while awaiting trial on sex trafficking allegations.

According to court documents, Epstein was a JPMorgan client from roughly 2000 to 2013, and a Deutsche Bank client from 2013 to 2018.

The JPMorgan plaintiff is a former ballet dancer who claims Epstein mistreated and trafficked her from 2006 to 2013, and the Deutsche Bank plaintiff claims the same from 2003 to 2018.

Both claimed that several cash payments from banks were made to compensate Epstein's victims.

In July 2020, New York's banking authority penalized Deutsche Bank $150 million for its ties with Epstein.

The US Virgin Islands, where Epstein had a residence, sued JPMorgan on Tuesday, stating that the bank turned a "blind eye" to his trafficking while providing banking services.

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