Celebrity Estate Planning - Estate of Jeffrey Epstein - Episode 216
- Jenny Rozelle, Host of Legal Tea
- Sep 30
- 7 min read
Hey there, Legal Tea Listeners! This is your host, Jenny Rozelle. We are here for episode 216 –and we are circling back to an “estate planning of the rich and famous” episode where we chat about celebrities and their estate planning (or lack thereof!). Today’s episode is, what I am going to call, an update episode – because a long time ago, I did an episode on Jeff Epstein’s estate (like way back in episode 58 – yeah, a long time ago!), but I’m seeing and hearing more things about his estate, so I figured it’s about time to do an episode on his estate and what’s going on. I’ll start with a bit of a recap of episode 58, so we get everyone brought up to speed or if you need a refresher, then here you go too. (I do so many of these episodes that most of the time I, myself, don’t remember because all the estates blur together in my head). Anyway… let’s dive in…
Let’s start with Jeff Epstein the person, before we dig into his estate and the mess surrounding it. According to a Women’s Health article, in his 20s, Jeff was a math and physics teacher. While tutoring the son of a top executive at Bear Stearns (that’s “Bear Sterns”), he got his foot in the door there, worked his way up to limited partner, and eventually left in the early 1980s to start his own firm, Intercontinental Assets Group, Inc. Not long after, he launched two more companies—J. Epstein & Co. and Financial Strategy Group, Inc.
Once he entered the financial world, Jeff began moving in very elite circles. A New York Magazine Intelligencer piece painted the picture: for decades, influential “serious” people attended his dinner parties, flew on his private jet, and helped keep the fiction alive that he was some kind of hedge fund genius—all while ignoring the fact he was often surrounded by a disturbingly young entourage. Why did they look the other way? Well … According to the article, it was simple: they were getting something out of it. So, if you’ve somehow never heard the name before, just know it’s tied to some truly awful things.
From the early 2000s onward, Jeff faced criminal and civil cases involving sexual abuse and trafficking of minors. In July 2019, he was convicted of sex trafficking and conspiracy to traffic minors. Just weeks later, on August 10, 2019, he was found dead in his jail cell. Suicide? Murder? Theories and rumors were everywhere—but the fact is, he died that day.
And here’s where it gets weird when it comes to estate stuff. Just two days before his death, Jeff signed a new will creating a testamentary trust—meaning anything passing through his will would end up in that trust. The witnesses? Two attorneys, one of them famously representing drug kingpin El Chapo. The will was filed in the U.S. Virgin Islands, where Epstein owned two private islands—likely to keep matters as private as possible. The trust’s beneficiaries aren’t listed, but speculation points to his brother, Mark Epstein, or his girlfriend, Karyna Shuliak, the last person he spoke to before his death.
The lawsuits didn’t end with Jeff’s death—if anything, they multiplied. The estate’s executors, attorney Darren Indyke and accountant Richard Kahn, were longtime employees. After Jeff’s passing, they were accused of moving $13 million tied to another entity: the Butterfly Trust, an investment vehicle Jeff set up in 2013. According to Virgin Islands Attorney General Denise George, after an investment by Jeff was liquidated in 2020, $13 million flowed into the Butterfly Trust, then was moved into three new entities—two of which named Darren and Richard (and their spouses) as beneficiaries. Virgin Islands Attorney General Denise George argued the transfers were designed to enrich themselves and hide assets from recovery.
Darren and Richard denied it, saying the Butterfly Trust had nothing to do with the estate. But court records show the trust was used to pay some of Jeff’s recruiters, blurring the lines over whether it should be considered part of the estate—and if so, whether it could be used to pay victims. But this was not the first time Virgin Islands Attorney General Denise George had gone after them. In January 2020, she sought $80 million from the estate, arguing the Virgin Islands had been misled into granting lucrative tax benefits that allowed Jeff to use his island as a base for abusing girls. So, with all of this, needless to say … filing the will there for “privacy” clearly didn’t shield it from scrutiny.
At his death, Jeff’s estate was estimated at just over $600 million, including jets, helicopters, prime real estate in Manhattan, Palm Beach, and Paris, a massive New Mexico ranch, the two islands, and a huge art collection. Money too of course. Since then, at least when I did the episode 58 way long ago, the estate had paid close to $200 million in taxes and about $120 million in victim settlements. But between disputed assets like the Butterfly Trust and ongoing lawsuits, no one really knows the true value. And then there’s the legal fees—over $30 million as of early 2022, and still climbing. With more victims likely to come forward, complex asset disputes, and an estate still very much in limbo, the question of what’s left for the beneficiaries—whoever they may be—is still a big, fat “TBD.” When I wrapped up episode 58, I basically said … this estate is not wrapping up anytime soon. And I was right. So let’s pick up there with more current updates…
The next big wave of updates came this year – in early 2025 – when according to Wealth Management.com, Jeff’s formerly-publicized $600 million estate/fortune had shrunk to under $40 million. The biggest hit came from about $170 million in settlements to more than 200 victims, and then another $105 million paid out of Jeff’s estate to resolve racketeering charges from the U.S. Virgin Islands. That was likely due to Virgin Islands Attorney General Denise George’s persistence and efforts. Honestly … once you factor these things in with what were likely huge attorney fees to unravel all this mess, as well as paying back the more traditional creditors that any wealthy person’s estate could have, Jeff’s $600 million estate and fortune dries up awfully quickly.
But that’s not where the story and updates end, my friends. Remember when I said in episode 58 and in the recap I did earlier on this episode about Jeff’s estate paying the estate had paid close to $200 million in taxes. Well, ON THAT, it was released in early 2025 that Jeff’s estate was going to receive fairly sizable tax refund. So, when they paid that almost $200 million in taxes, they did so proactively and preemptively. According to Wealth Management’s website, many of Jeff’s estate assets ended up selling for far less than expected. For example, his Manhattan townhouse, initially listed for nearly $90 million, ultimately sold for $51 million. Because of these lower sale prices, the estate received an approximate $112 million refund on overpaid amounts, boosting the estate’s balance to roughly $150 million (I’ve seen reports of $150 million; I’ve seen reports of $130 million, so somewhere around there). After the few remaining claims against the estate are resolved—most have already been handled—any leftover funds will be placed into a legitimate trust and distributed to the estate and/or trust beneficiaries, which like I said earlier, are not really known.
The final update I wanted to give was in regards to that attorney, Darren Indyke, and accountant, Richard Kahn. Last we knew, they were in a bit of hot water – and that really remains true to today. According to that Wealth Management article, there is still an active lawsuit against Darren and Richard for their involvement in all of this … and specifically, arguing they “aided and abetted” Jeff. Though, I tried to dig up more information on this lawsuit – and I can’t find anything super concrete. I should not say that … I found like the Opinion and Court Order in the case that was filed against them in the UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT, the SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF NEW YORK – and I’ll link to it in the source links for this episode, if this is something you want to dig into yourself. I do believe it’s still very much active, but to try and piece together exactly where things stand with Darren and Richard is very difficult – so we’ll see what ends up happening with them. I’m sure, at some point, there will be a headline about it!
As we start to wrap this episode up – I'll be honest—covering Jeff Epstein's estate isn't something I particularly enjoy doing. This man committed horrific acts of sexual abuse and trafficking, and frankly, I do not love giving him any more spotlight than necessary. But his estate case offers some important lessons about wealth, estate planning, and what happens when criminal activity collides with substantial assets. What started as a $600 million fortune has been whittled down through victim settlements, legal fees, taxes, and disappointing asset sales—demonstrating how quickly even massive estates can shrink under legal pressure and scrutiny.
What personally bothers me most about this whole saga is that after everything—after the settlements to over 200 victims, after the racketeering payouts, after all the legal fees—there's still likely going to be a healthy chunk of change (in the millions) left that will likely end up in the hands of his estate and/or trust beneficiaries. It pains me to think that money connected to such terrible crimes might just quietly flow to family members or associates unless something changes with the ongoing lawsuit against Darren Indyke and Richard Kahn. This case serves as a stark reminder that sophisticated estate planning and attempts at privacy usually cannot shield you from consequences, but unfortunately, they sometimes can protect assets long enough for beneficiaries to eventually benefit. For our listeners, it underscores the critical importance of choosing ethical executors and understanding that your estate's reputation—and the scrutiny it faces—directly reflects the life you lived.
Alrighty, let’s wrap this one up and shift to a sneak peak at next week. Next week we’re back to a “cautionary tale” episode where we talk about real-life clients, real-life cases that I, or my office, have worked on -or- maybe they are just generally good things to know/be aware of so you don’t slip up and turn into a cautionary tale one day. In next week’s episode, we’re going to talk about making sure you work with the right professionals to properly fulfill your goals. I recently met someone that, after hearing me speak about asset protection trust planning (asset protection specifically against the cost of long-term care and Medicaid), they were really bummed to hear me talk about how a good ol’ revocable trust (that they had) would not help them with protecting assets against long-term care costs. So yeah … next week, we’re going to dive into what happened there. So, until then, take care and be well!
Sources:
Opinion and Court Order in case against Darren Indyke and Richard Kahn: https://law.justia.com/cases/federal/district-courts/new-york/nysdce/1:2024cv02192/618125/38/
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