Ruemmler's resignation comes after emails revealed her links to the late sex offender.
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Top Goldman Sachs lawyer Kathy Ruemmler resigns over Epstein ties
Kathryn Ruemmler listens as then-US President Barack Obama speaks at the FBI headquarters in Washington, DC, in 2013 [File: Charles Dharapak/AP Photo]
The top lawyer at Goldman Sachs, Kathy Ruemmler, has announced that she will resign following revelations of her links to the late financier and
sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
Ruemmler’s resignation comes after the United States Department of Justice’s latest release of investigative
files about Epstein showed that
she had received gifts from Epstein, offered him advice on managing his reputation, and likened him to an older brother.
Goldman Sachs CEO David Solomon confirmed Ruemmler’s resignation in a statement on Thursday, saying that he respected her decision.
“Throughout her tenure, Kathy has been an extraordinary general counsel, and we are grateful for her contributions and sound advice on a wide range of consequential legal matters for the firm,” Solomon said in a statement provided to Al Jazeera.
“As one of the most accomplished professionals in her field, Kathy has also been a mentor and friend to many of our people, and she will be missed,” he said.
In an interview with the Financial Times on Thursday, Ruemmler, who previously
served as White House counsel under US President Barack Obama, said that she would step down as chief legal officer and general counsel at the end of June.
Ruemmler told the newspaper that media attention on her relationship with Epstein, who died in prison in 2019 while awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges, had become a “distraction”.
She had previously expressed regret for knowing Epstein, and denied providing the financier with legal representation or advocating on his behalf to any third party.