U.S. Department of Justice¶
United States Attorney Southern District of Florida¶
October 9, 2007¶
VIA ELECTRONIC MAIL Lilly Ann Sanchez, Esq. Fowler White Burnett 1395 Brickell Ave Fl 14 Miami Florida 33131-3300¶
Re: Jeffrey Epstein¶
Dear Lilly:¶
Thank you for your letter to First Assistantaregarding the selection of an attorney to represent the victims identified in the investigation of Mr. Epstein. While I appreciate your client’s interest in a resolution of the victim’s claims without the filing of lawsuits, I do not believe that your proposal falls within the terms of the Non-Prosecution Agreement signed by your client and the United States.¶
I would recommend the following. The U.S. Attorney’s Office would ask Judge Davis to assist in the selection of one or more attorneys to represent the identified victims. If Judge Davis is willing to perform that limited service pro bono, Mr. Epstein will not need to pay for that service. The United States would provide Judge Davis with a list of criteria for the selection of the attomey(s).¶
The selected attorney(s) would represent the victim(s) on a contingency fee basis, pursuant to a fee agreement reached between the victim(s) and the attomey(s). If he deems it appropriate, Judge Davis can propose the terms of that agreement, subject to acceptance by the victim. The lawyer(s) can interview each potential client to determine how they want to proceed — including whether she wants to use the attorney selected by Judge Davis or if she wants to choose her own attorney. Judge Davis can advise the selected attorney(s) of Mr. Epstein’s desire to settle the cases out of court using Judge Davis as the mediator/special master, which the attorneys can report to their clients. If any one or more of the victims, in consultation with their independent counsel, wants to mediate the case, and agrees that Judge Davis should serve as the mediator/special master, they can proceed accordingly. At that point, Mr. Epstein’s payment of Judge Davis’s fees would be more appropriate.¶
LILLY ANN SANCHEZ, ESQ. OCTOBER 9, 2007 PAGE 2¶
I am out of the District, so I am not available to meet with you this week. I am available for a telephone conference tomorrow at 5:00 p.m. or Thursday at 5:00 p.m., if you would like to discuss this in more detail. I also have not heard any more from Jay Lefkowitz or Guy Lewis, so please let me know whether I need to contact them directly or if you will share this information with them.¶
Thank you for your assistance.¶
Sincerely,¶
R. Alexander Acosta United States Attorne¶
By:¶
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