Happy Friday! — As you may or may not know, I’ve been working my way through law school for the past two years.

During my time there, I’ve developed quite an interest in intellectual property. It’s an interesting field of law and one that is of increasing importance to businesses.

As a staff member of Fordham’s Intellectual Property, Media and Entertainment Journal, I recently put together an article looking at an ongoing trademark lawsuit involving OpenAI, the company behind ChatGPT.

It’s an interesting case — as it was OpenAI that actually started the lawsuit against a little-know tech company called Open Artificial Intelligence, alleging trademark infringement among other claims. OpenAI sued after it was unable to secure a trademark registration for its name.

But now, Open Artificial Intelligence has filed infringement counterclaims of their own, and just last month a judge allowed a number of claims to move forward.

Click here to read my article on the trademark case embroiling the most important A.I. company in the world, and how it’s now in a fight for the right to use its very name.

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Thanks for reading!

I just wanted to send a quick note about one exciting thing I did this week. I was able to fill in for Brad Mielke and host ABC News’ flagship daily news podcast, Start Here.

Over the years, Brad has really turned this ~20-minute show into something special. Each day, he and the Start Here team work to bring listeners three or four of the day’s top news stories and they do it in a way that’s not only informative, but thought-provoking, entertaining, and a bit funny at times.

I was really excited to join the team this week and fill in for Brad as he took a few days off. So please, take a listen to my stab at Start Here — it’s available wherever you get your podcasts.

I think we put together a great episode looking at the upcoming Coronation of King Charles — not a fawning look at the pomp and circumstance, but instead why this may be the last coronation of its kind; the seditious conspiracy verdicts against some of the leaders of the Proud Boys; changes that could be coming to the how women access birth control; and finally, why the future is password-less.

Take a listen and if you enjoy it — please follow the podcast and leave a rating!

I’ll be back filling in on Monday’s episode as well.

Thanks! Talk soon.

In the late 1970s and into the early 1980s, Jeffrey Epstein was working at Bear Stearns, the New York-based investment bank and trading firm that eventually collapsed in 2008.

At this time, Epstein lived in anonymity. It would be decades before he’d become a household name for conspiracy theories and a talking point at White House press briefings.

Since Epstein’s arrest in 2019, a virtual army of journalists has worked (myself included) to piece together Epstein’s past and how he became the infamous billionaire sex offender he became.

Part of Epstein’s mystique is how little we’ve heard directly from Epstein himself over the years. Though he had appeared in newspapers for various reasons, rarely was he the direct subject of the story before the early 2000s. Two of the earliest profiles on Epstein came in 2002 and 2003, under alluring titles such as Jeffrey Epstein: International Money Man of Mystery and The Talented Mr. Epstein.

Now, more of the puzzle surrounding Epstein’s opaque past was filled in this week with the release of a 1981 deposition transcript in which Epstein was questioned by the Securities and Exchange Commission as part of an insider-trading investigation into Bear Stearns.

Here’s what we learned.

Further clarity on Epstein’s departure from Bear

On April 1st, 1981 at the towering federal office building in lower Manhattan, Jeffrey Epstein sat for a deposition with attorneys representing the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A little more than two weeks earlier, Epstein had left his job at Bear Stearns and it happened at the same time the company was being investigated for possible insider trading related to an offer by the Seagram Company, the well-known Canadian spirits distiller, to purchase St. Joe’s Mineral Corp.

The S.E.C. was investigating whether any traders at Bear Stearns had gotten inside information about the forthcoming offer by Seagram and purchased securities based on that information. No one at Bear Stearns was ever charged, though separately three people were later indicted for insider trading related to the deal.

As part of the S.E.C.’s investigation, Epstein voluntarily sat for a deposition and was accompanied by attorney Mark Lehman, who represented both Bear Stearns as well as Epstein personally.

Throughout the deposition, Epstein repeatedly insisted he knew nothing about the St. Joe’s/Seagram deal, nor about any traders at Bear Stearns who were dealing with those stocks.

Epstein insists his departure from Bear Stearns was unrelated to the insider trading investigation. He said it was instead in response to disciplinary action taken against him by Bear’s executive committee.

Epstein claimed that he was punished for loaning money to his childhood friend, Warren Eisenstein, to purchase stock. He said he didn’t know it was improper to do so until afterward.

A memo from the executive committee that was included with the transcript showed Epstein was fined $2,500 by Bear Stearns as a result of the violation.

Epstein said in his deposition that he thought the fine “regarding the violation fee is ridiculous; I think it’s excessive.” He said this is what prompted him to resign from the company shortly thereafter.

This version of events is consistent with the 2003 Vanity Fair profile of Jeffrey Epstein by Vicky Ward, who references this deposition material though it’s unclear how she obtained the deposition decades ago.

Epstein’s attorney Mark Lehman, who also represented Bear Stearns, did not dispute or interject during any of Epstein’s comments regarding the reasons for his departure from Bear Stearns.

Epstein’s Compensation at Bear

Besides more clarity on the reasons behind Epstein’s departure from Bear Stearns, the deposition also provides some insight into how much money Epstein was making at the time.

It’s no secret that those involved in stock trading and investments make most of their money from commissions and bonuses rather than their base salary, and for Epstein, it was no different.

Epstein was not a stockbroker. He never had a broker’s license. He told the S.E.C. that he was an “account executive” who “help[ed] out with commodities and financial futures recommendations to the sales force.”

For this, Epstein said he was paid $42,000 in yearly salary. Today, that’d be worth approximately $140,000.

While that’s certainly a respectable salary, Epstein dismissed Bear Stearns’ salaries as “very low”, instead pointing to the bonuses and commissions that he would receive as “a lot of money.”

Epstein told the S.E.C. that in the year before his deposition, his total compensation from Bear Stearns was over $200,000. That’d be worth at least $665,000 in 2022.

Epstein also reveals that by this time he had two residences: One in his hometown neighborhood of Seagate, Brooklyn, and the other at 265 E 66th Street in Manhattan. He also discusses how he was regularly traveling to Palm Beach, Florida and had recently looked at purchasing an apartment there.

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Epstein’s first criminal conviction?

Perhaps one of the most peculiar things to come from this deposition was Epstein’s revelation that he had previously been convicted of a crime.

Up until his conviction in Florida state court on watered-down charges of “procuring a child for prostitution” and sex trafficking in 2008, which stemmed from the initial investigation into Epstein’s sexual abuse of minors, it was believed that Epstein had a clean record.

And at least here in the U.S., he did.

During his deposition with the S.E.C., Epstein was asked whether he’d ever been convicted or indicted for a crime, to which Epstein revealed he’d been convicted of a crime in Great Britain.

His description of the crime is short, stating that he had bought an antique sword and that he got in trouble for carrying the item. Epstein said he was told he had to ship the item out of the country.

Epstein does not reveal a date for the crime or conviction, but given that this occurred before 1981 that would be more than 20 years before any other known conviction.

Of course, keeping things in perspective this conviction pales in comparison to Epstein’s later crimes. But as I said, even years after his death we’re still filling in pieces of the puzzle and adding further revelations concerning Epstein’s mysterious past… however random or insignificant they may seem.

Mark Remillard is a journalist based in New York City and the host of the award-winning podcast Truth and Lies: Jeffrey Epstein, which examined the late sex-offenders crimes and his financial history. It was awarded the National Edward R. Murrow Award for Investigative Reporting in Network Radio.

More info: https://linktr.ee/markjremillard

On the first anniversary of the January 6th riot at the U.S. Capitol, let’s take a look at another time violence came to the floor of the U.S. Senate.

It happened on May 22nd, 1856, when Rep. Preston Brooks assaulted anti-slavery Republican Sen. Charles Sumner inside the Senate chamber following comments that Sumner made about a relative of Brooks, Sen. Andrew Butler.

During a speech on the Senate floor, Sumner likened Butler’s support of slavery to Butler having a mistress “who, though ugly to others, is always lovely to him.”

After the Senate adjourned for the day, Brooks entered the chamber with a cane and beat Sumner over the head.

The assault of Sumner is an important tale about what happens when we choose violence over discourse and, perhaps more importantly, what happens when we fail to hold responsible those who choose violence.

Both the U.S. House and Senate investigated the incident, eventually recommending that Brooks be given the most serious punishment available: expulsion from the House.

However, a resolution to remove Brooks failed to pass.

Brooks resigned in protest but would return to his state of South Carolina and be re-elected to the House just a month later. Rather than being scorned as a thug, he was hailed a hero.

The incident is telling because, as we know, discourse would further break down and the country would hurtle toward the Civil War just five years later.

Sadly, this incident has many reverberations in today’s sharply divided political environment.

The Congressional report on the incident called the assault a “most-flagrant violation” against Sumner’s First Amendment rights, the rights of his constituents, and the character of the nation.

It’s hard to think of a scenario in which violence should be least tolerated than when a sitting Senator is delivering a lawful speech on the floor of the U.S. Senate. Perhaps, Congress’ certification of a lawful and fair election is right up there.

Originally published at https://www.mjr.news on January 6, 2022.

On October 27th at Gotham Hall in New York City, I accepted the 2021 Edward R. Murrow Award for Network Radio Investigative Reporting!

It’s such a profound honor to accept this award on behalf of ABC News and all the incredible journalists who helped make Truth and Lies: Jeffrey Epstein possible.

The 2021 Murrow Awards Gala saw ABC News accept a total of nine award, including Overall Excellence for both Network Television and Network Radio.

Congrats to all the incredible journalists who were recognized at the Murrow Awards Gala!

Originally published at https://www.mjr.news on October 28, 2021.

It’s an honor to announce that Truth and Lies: Jeffrey Epstein is the winner of the 2021 Edward R. Murrow Award for Network Radio Investigative Reporting!

This is one of journalism’s most coveted awards and, to my knowledge, just the second time that ABC News Radio has ever been awarded a National Edward R. Murrow Award for investigative reporting.

There are so many people to thank for their work on this project, so here goes:

A huge thanks to the incredible journalists within ABC News’ Investigative Unit, including James Hill, Cindy Galli, Chris Vlasto, Pete Madden, Chris Francescani, Kaitlyn Folmer, Emily Ruchalski, Halley Freger, and more.

Thanks to our legal and standards team, which included Betsy Shorr and Maria MatasarPadilla, who poured over our scripts to ensure our reporting stood on a solid foundation and was supported by the facts.

Thanks to our contributing financial reporters Tom Volscho and Roddy Boyd who helped break new ground on Jeffrey Epstein’s mysterious financial history and how he came to be so wealthy.

Thanks to Evan Viola, whose imaginative and moving score helped bring our episodes to life.

Thanks to producer Kate McAullife who took command of hundreds of hours of audio interviews and ensured only the best material made the final episodes.

And finally, a huge thank you to the incredibly brave and strong women who came forward to share their stories with us. This story could not have been told without them.

It’s such an honor to receive this award and my apologies if I missed anyone.

Overall, ABC News won an impressive nine National Edward R. Murrow Awards (five of those for ABC News Radio).

Next, is the Edward R. Murrow Awards Gala in New York on Oct. 27th!

Read more about ABC News’ nine Edward R. Murrow Awards here:

Originally published at https://www.mjr.news on August 17, 2021.