The Deposition
In May 2016, Ghislaine Maxwell was deposed in the civil defamation case Giuffre v. Maxwell (S.D.N.Y.). The deposition was taken by Virginia Giuffre’s attorneys, including those at Boies Schiller Flexner, and covered Maxwell’s relationship with Epstein, her professional activities, her knowledge of Epstein’s conduct with underage girls, and specific allegations made by Giuffre. The deposition ran for hours and produced a substantial transcript.
Upon completion, Maxwell’s attorneys sought a protective order keeping the deposition under seal. They argued that publication would cause Maxwell reputational harm and prejudice potential future proceedings. Judge Robert Sweet originally imposed a seal, which was subsequently the subject of years of litigation over whether and to what extent the transcript should be publicly available.
The 2019 Unsealing
After Epstein’s July 2019 arrest, a federal judge—responding to media organizations’ motions to unseal—ordered the release of a significant portion of the civil litigation file, including portions of Maxwell’s deposition. The released material quickly became a major news story. Significant portions showed Maxwell denying knowledge of Epstein’s illegal conduct and denying having recruited minors. She also made statements about her own professional role that appeared inconsistent with other documentary evidence.
The deposition also included the passage describing an encounter involving Prince Andrew, Virginia Giuffre, and Johanna Sjoberg that generated international headlines.
The 2022 and 2024 Releases
Following Maxwell’s conviction, courts continued to process motions to unseal additional materials from the Giuffre v. Maxwell litigation. In August 2022, additional exhibit materials were released. In January 2024, under an order by U.S. District Judge Loretta Preska, a substantial tranche of additional documents was unsealed—including more deposition pages, exhibits, and supporting materials. The January 2024 release included the names of over 170 individuals mentioned in the case file, which generated sustained international media coverage.
Significance
Maxwell’s deposition represents one of the most important individual documents in the entire Epstein case. Her sworn statements—made in a civil context—became direct evidence in her criminal trial and reflected both her operational role and her awareness of Epstein’s conduct. The multi-year battle to unseal the deposition is itself a case study in the tension between privacy interests, accountability, and the public’s right to understand how the justice system functions.