House holds Leon Black in contempt in Epstein subpoena clash

Caitlin Reilly, Bloomberg News on Sep 16, 2026

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WASHINGTON — The U.S. House voted to hold billionaire Leon Black in contempt of Congress for failure to comply with two subpoenas issued in a committee’s investigation into sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.

The matter now goes to the Justice Department, which can decide whether to pursue charges against the co-founder of Apollo Global Management. If the DOJ brings a criminal case and Black is ultimately convicted, he could face a fine up to $100,000 and one to 12 months in prison for refusing to comply with the congressional subpoenas, one requiring him to testify under oath and the other to hand over documents.

A Justice Department spokesman said prosecutors take the contempt vote “seriously” and that Jeanine Pirro, the U.S. attorney for the District of Columbia “will review the referral of Mr. Black carefully.”

The House vote Wednesday came amid an escalating legal battle between Black and the House Oversight Committee, the panel investigating the late Epstein and his network.

“No one is above the law,” House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer said in a statement. “We will continue to seek transparency for the American people and justice for survivors in our investigation of the federal government’s handling of the Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell criminal cases.”

Black’s attorneys, Susan Estrich and Aaron Cutler, called the vote “an outrageous action that ignores the facts and the truth about Mr. Black.”

Black walked out early from voluntary testimony in June regarding his relationship to Epstein. Black left the June interview after refusing to answer questions about nondisclosure agreements he made with women in Epstein’s orbit, the committee said.

The subpoenas demand he furnish the committee with the NDAs and return for testimony.

Rather than show up for a deposition in early September, Black filed a federal lawsuit on the day his testimony was scheduled seeking to block the subpoenas. Black and his attorneys have repeatedly denied any wrongdoing by him and accused the committee of abusing its power.

Black’s attorneys have also asked the Office of Congressional Conduct to investigate Comer and accused the committee’s top Democrat, Robert Garcia, of making false statements about the billionaire.

“We intend to pursue our litigation challenging this action and will hold the Committee and Chairman Comer accountable in the courts,” Black’s lawyers said in the Wednesday statement.

When Black appeared before the committee in June, Black said in an opening statement to the panel that he never abused women and wasn’t blackmailed by Epstein, his longtime friend and adviser. He has acknowledged paying Epstein $158 million over the years, which he said was for estate and tax planning advice.

Epstein died in a New York jail cell in 2019 while awaiting trial on federal sex-trafficking charges. The House Oversight Committee has been investigating his networks, as well as potential lapses in federal law enforcement’s response.

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(With assistance from Dylan Sloan and Jimmy Jenkins.)