MANHATTAN – JPMorgan Chase is suing Mr Jes Staley to hold the former executive responsible for any damages stemming from lawsuits accusing the bank of facilitating Jeffrey Epstein’s sex-trafficking.

The bank on Wednesday filed a third-party complaint against Mr Staley in Manhattan federal court, arguing he should be held liable if allegations about his relationship with Epstein are shown to be true. 

JPMorgan also brought separate claims against Mr Staley for breaching his duty to the bank. It said that, because of his “faithless service”, the bank was entitled to recover all compensation paid to Mr Staley between 2006 and 2013.

Mr Staley’s lawyer did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Mr Staley has previously denied involvement in Epstein’s sex-trafficking.

The close ties between Mr Staley, once JPMorgan’s private banking chief, and Epstein have been at the core of two suits claiming the bank knew – or should have known – about Epstein’s crimes and kept him on as a client anyway. But Mr Staley himself was not named as a defendant in either suit.

JPMorgan stressed in its filing that it was still denying the claims in a proposed class action by Epstein victims and a separate suit by the US Virgin Islands. The bank has moved to dismiss both suits and is set to argue its motions on Monday. 

In its filing, JPMorgan said Mr Staley failed to report his conduct with Epstein and misleadingly vouched for Epstein’s good character.

Mr Staley had a duty of loyalty and “was required to act in good faith” in the financial institution’s best interests, the bank said.

“Instead, if the allegations...are true, Staley repeatedly abandoned the interests of JPMC and served his own and Epstein’s interests.”

Mr Staley worked at the bank in various positions between 1979 and 2013, before joining Barclays as chief executive in 2015. He stepped down as Barclays CEO in 2021 due to his Epstein ties. BLOOMBERG