No, a federal court didn’t release Jeffrey Epstein’s client list

On Jan. 3, more than 40 previously sealed documents associated with Jeffrey Epstein were released by a New York federal court. 

People on social media have claimed for weeks that Jeffrey Epstein’s client list would become public or be leaked online as part of the records release.

#EpsteinClientList has been trending on social media with claims that at least 150 people, including some Hollywood celebrities or current and former politicians and diplomats, will be named as Epstein’s former clients.

THE QUESTION

Did a federal court release Jeffrey Epstein’s client list?

THE SOURCES

• A review of 40 documents unsealed on Jan. 3, 2024
• Dec. 18, 2023 court order from New York Federal Judge Loretta A. Preska
• Jan. 3, 2024 court order from Preska
• Historical court record review of Giuffre v. Maxwell via PACER

THE ANSWER

No, a federal court didn’t release Jeffrey Epstein’s client list. The names unsealed in the Jan. 3 records release are largely people previously known to be connected to the Epstein case, not necessarily his clients.

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WHAT WE FOUND

On Jan. 3, U.S. District Judge Loretta Preska ordered the release of 40 unredacted court documents that were filed in a now-settled civil lawsuit against Ghislane Maxwell, the former girlfriend of Jeffrey Epstein. The suit was filed by Virginia Giuffre, one of Epstein’s alleged trafficking victims in 2015 and was settled in 2017. 

Maxwell is currently serving a 20-year prison sentence after being convicted in December 2021 for helping Epstein recruit and abuse underage girls.

Included in the newly released civil court documents were more than 100 names that were previously redacted. 

The judge presiding over the case in New York has not ordered the release of a specific “client list,” as some social media posts have claimed. 

The people named in the records include many of Epstein's accusers, members of his staff who told their stories to tabloid newspapers, people who served as witnesses at Maxwell's trial, people mentioned in passing indepositions, and people who investigated Epstein, including prosecutors, a journalist and a police detective.

Preska, who made the call last month to release the information, said she was doing so largely because much of it is already public.

For example, former President Donald Trump’s name was mentioned during a deposition and former President Bill Clinton’s was was mentioned in an email and a deposition. Both Trump’s and Clinton’s inclusion in these documents has been previously reported.

Britain’s Prince Andrew is also named in the court documents. Prince Andrew’s connection with Epstein has been widely reported and Giuffre settled a sex abuse lawsuit against Prince Andrew in 2022.

None of these court documents implicate Trump, Clinton or Prince Andrew in any wrongdoing.

Some previous court records from the settled lawsuit have already been released, but many names of individuals connected to Epstein or Maxwell in those records were redacted and given pseudonyms of John Doe or Jane Doe. Other records containing names were previously sealed and are now being released for the first time.  

Of the more than 150 listings in the order, at least eight names were ordered to remain sealed because they were minors that allegedly suffered sexual abuse. 

Two “Does” were granted an extension past the Jan. 1, 2024, deadline to appeal, according to an order issued by Preska on Jan. 3. 

So, we can VERIFY the information that was unsealed is not a “client list” but are the identities of people who have appeared in hundreds of court records stemming from the Maxwell lawsuit.

This story is also available in Spanish / Lee este artículo también en español: No, una corte federal no publicó la lista de clientes de Jeffrey Epstein