Leon Black

Leon Black is the co-founder of Apollo Global Management, one of the world’s largest alternative asset managers. He paid Jeffrey Epstein for tax and estate planning advice between 2012 and 2017 — all after Epstein’s 2008 conviction. An independent review commissioned by Apollo’s board put the total at roughly $158 million; U.S. Senate investigators later concluded the true figure was about $170 million.

The Payments to Epstein

In October 2020, Apollo’s board retained the law firm Dechert LLP to conduct an independent review of Black’s relationship with Epstein. Dechert examined more than 60,000 communications and interviewed more than 20 people. Its findings, released January 25, 2021, were that Black had paid Epstein around $158 million from 2012 through 2017 for advice on trust and estate planning, tax issues, philanthropy, and the operation of his family office.

According to Apollo, the review found that “all fees paid to Mr. Epstein by Mr. Black or his Family Office were for bona fide tax, estate planning and other related services,” and that “Dechert found no evidence that Mr. Black was involved in any way with Mr. Epstein’s criminal activities at any time.” Apollo had never retained Epstein, and Epstein never invested in Apollo-managed funds. Black has said that giving Epstein a second chance after his conviction was “a terrible mistake.”

The scale of the payments drew scrutiny because Epstein was neither a licensed tax attorney nor a certified public accountant. In a 2023 letter, Senate Finance Committee Chairman Ron Wyden said the review documented that Epstein’s tax strategies were intended to help Black avoid more than $1 billion in federal taxes, including one transaction that reportedly saved Black about $600 million in future gift and estate taxes.

In March 2025, Wyden released new information stating that the true total Black paid Epstein was about $170 million — roughly $12 million higher than the Dechert review had identified — after Senate investigators found additional transfers. Wyden also released a $62 million settlement between Black and the Attorney General of the U.S. Virgin Islands, which acknowledged that “Jeffrey Epstein used the money Black paid him to partially fund his operations in the Virgin Islands.”

Departure from Apollo

In January 2021, alongside the release of the Dechert review, Apollo announced that Black would step down as CEO on or before July 31, 2021, while remaining chairman. On March 22, 2021, Apollo announced an accelerated transition: Black stepped down as CEO immediately, with co-founder Marc Rowan succeeding him, and Black also relinquished the chairman role rather than retaining it. Former SEC chairman Jay Clayton was named non-executive chairman of the board.

Black said he viewed the moment as “the ideal moment to step back and focus on my family, my wife Debra’s and my health issues, and my many other interests.” Coverage noted the accelerated timing came amid sustained public scrutiny over his ties to Epstein, including protests by artists over his role as chairman of the Museum of Modern Art.

2026: School Districts Sever Lifetouch Contracts

In February 2026, school districts began canceling contracts with Lifetouch, the school photography company, after social media users highlighted its corporate ties to Black through Apollo. Shutterfly acquired Lifetouch in 2018, and in 2019 funds managed by Apollo affiliates acquired Shutterfly — including its Lifetouch division — in a deal valued at roughly $2.7 billion that closed that September. Black co-founded Apollo but had stepped down from the firm in 2021, well before the 2026 backlash.

Multiple additional districts severed ties as the story spread, and Central Dauphin School District in Pennsylvania issued a public response to parent concerns about the Lifetouch connection.

What Is Established

Black has never been charged with any crime in connection with Epstein, and he has denied wrongdoing. The board-commissioned Dechert review found no evidence that he was involved in Epstein’s criminal activities. What is established is that Black maintained a paid relationship with Epstein for five years after Epstein’s 2008 conviction, paying him a sum the Dechert review put at about $158 million and Senate investigators later put at about $170 million — and that the institutional consequences of that relationship extended to school districts across the country in 2026. The Senate Finance Committee’s continuing investigation into those payments remains ongoing.

Documents

Primary-source records that name or reference Leon Black. Inclusion in these documents is not, by itself, evidence of wrongdoing; Black has never been charged with any crime in connection with Epstein and denies all allegations, and a board-commissioned independent review found no evidence he was involved in Epstein’s criminal activities.

• DOJ Epstein Files (Epstein Files Transparency Act release) — The Justice Department’s release of investigative records documents Epstein’s relationship with Black, including material on the payments Black made to him. The release also contains third-party allegations against Black; through his attorney he has called them “false and fraudulent,” and they remain uncharged and disputed.