Judge Jessica G. L. Clarke of the U.S. District Court, Southern District of New York, granted sanctions against Wigdor and Jane Doe in their lawsuit against Leon Black. Sanctions are among the most serious penalty a judge can give to a law firm or a lawyer in a court proceeding.

Susan Estrich of Estrich Goldin, attorney for Leon Black, offered the following comment:

“This 76-page ruling is a thorough repudiation of Doe’s and Wigdor’s claims – and their credibility. The Court found that Doe and Wigdor lied ‘repeatedly’ to the point of ‘serious sanctionable misconduct.’ The Court found that they destroyed evidence, falsified evidence, and committed ‘serious and varied misconduct’ in their zeal to try to destroy Mr. Black. The Court barred Doe from using her fake ‘evidence,’ called her Wigdor counsel a liar, and awarded Mr. Black attorneys’ fees associated with making this motion.

“Her credibility having been destroyed, Doe should withdraw her Complaint and apologize to Mr. Black for manufacturing false and defamatory claims. We urge the federal authorities to investigate this fraud on the Court.

“The court’s sanctions award applies to Doe, the Wigdor firm, and its lead counsel in this matter, Jeanne Christensen, who must ‘share this Opinion and Order’ with federal courts.

“Wigdor and Doe should never have filed this case against Mr. Black. As Judge Clarke noted, the Epstein victims’ class counsel expressly warned the Wigdor firm that the claims were fraudulent and that Doe never met Epstein, but Wigdor nevertheless continued the lawsuit and launched a media campaign to try to destroy Mr. Black in an attempt to shake him down for a financial windfall. Mr. Black refused because he knew the claims were false.

“Judge Clarke’s ruling follows an earlier finding by District Court Judge Jed Rakoff that found Doe not to be credible. Among Doe’s outlandish claims are that in less than three years she was trafficked to more than 50 prominent executives and politicians including a former cabinet secretary and a former President. None of this was true. And her name doesn’t appear in the database of Epstein’s victims. Her mother and family have acknowledged that Doe makes up stories and now a federal court found she also fabricates ‘evidence.’

“Despite these glaring red flags, Wigdor rushed to exploit Doe to try to destroy Mr. Black and, in furtherance of its corrupt scheme, ‘lied repeatedly to the Court and to opposing counsel.’ They tried to weaponize local and federal law enforcement against Mr. Black, knowingly gave authorities false information in violation of federal law.

“The Wigdor firm has filed three civil lawsuits against Mr. Black, and they attempted to peddle all of these claims to the Department of Justice, Manhattan District Attorney and the media as part of an effort to embarrass and destroy Mr. Black’s reputation. The outcomes have been clear. The Ganieva case was dismissed with prejudice. The Pierson case was dismissed with prejudice and Mr. Black made clear that he never met Ms. Pierson. Now, Wigdor and Jane Doe have been sanctioned for their misconduct by a federal judge. It is shameful what they have done and there is absolutely no truth to any of the allegations against Mr. Black.”

Mr. Black is represented by: Michael Carlinsky and partners at Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan, LLP; E. Danya Perry and partners at Perry Law; and Susan Estrich and partners at Estrich Goldin LLP.

For a copy of Judge Clarke’s opinion, please contact wclay@longacresquare.com

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