Once a trusted legal gatekeeper at Goldman Sachs — now stepping aside after scrutiny over past ties to Jeffrey Epstein.
Kathy Ruemmler, the chief legal officer of Goldman Sachs and former White House counsel to Barack Obama, announced Thursday that she will step down from her role following renewed scrutiny over her past relationship with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
Ruemmler said she would resign as chief legal officer and general counsel effective June 30, 2026. Her decision follows the emergence of emails in which she described Epstein as an “older brother,” referred to him as “Uncle Jeffrey,” and expressed affection toward him years after his 2008 conviction for sex crimes.
In more recent public statements, Ruemmler has called Epstein a “monster,” and a Goldman Sachs spokesperson previously said she “regrets ever knowing him.” But the tone of earlier correspondence — including a 2018 message thanking him for luxury gifts — drew criticism. According to reports, Epstein gave Ruemmler expensive handbags and a fur coat during her time in private practice after leaving the White House in 2014.
Wall Street firms typically enforce strict policies governing gifts between clients and employees to avoid conflicts of interest and potential violations of anti-bribery laws. Goldman’s internal code of conduct requires preapproval for such exchanges.
Ruemmler, who has served as Goldman’s top lawyer since 2020, had previously indicated she did not intend to resign. In her statement Thursday, she said her priority had always been to protect the firm’s legal and reputational interests and to uphold its “core value of integrity.”
Goldman Chief Executive David Solomon accepted her resignation, praising her as “one of the most accomplished professionals in her field” and acknowledging her mentorship within the firm.
Epstein, who was arrested again in 2019 on federal sex trafficking charges, died by suicide in a Manhattan jail while awaiting trial.
Ruemmler’s departure marks a significant shift at one of Wall Street’s most prominent institutions, underscoring how past associations with Epstein continue to reverberate years after his death.
