Rina Oh’s lawsuits against Virginia Giuffre’s estate are both on hold. The two cases — a federal defamation action in the Southern District of New York and a sexual assault claim in New York State Supreme Court under the Adult Survivors Act — transferred to Giuffre’s estate when Giuffre died by suicide on April 24, 2025, but neither can move forward until a fiduciary is formally appointed to stand in as a party. As of mid-2026, that appointment has not happened, and both matters remain stayed.1Vicky Ward Investigates. Legal Pressure Was Mounting on Virginia Giuffre
The Two Cases Now Held Against the Estate
The federal case is Amen v. Giuffre, Case No. 1:21-cv-08839, filed October 28, 2021 in the Southern District of New York under Oh’s legal name Rina Oh Amen and assigned to Judge Naomi Reice Buchwald. It brings claims of libel, assault, and slander, alleging that Giuffre defamed Oh by calling her a “recruiter” for Jeffrey Epstein on a podcast and in social media posts.2CourtListener. Amen v. Giuffre1Vicky Ward Investigates. Legal Pressure Was Mounting on Virginia Giuffre Giuffre filed a counterclaim under New York Civil Rights Law § 76-a, the state’s anti-SLAPP statute, arguing her podcast comments and tweets were protected expression on a matter of public concern. No ruling on the merits of that counterclaim had been reported by the time of Giuffre’s death, and the case had not settled during four years of litigation.3TLC Law LLC. Press Release for VG
The state case is a sexual assault claim filed under New York’s Adult Survivors Act, the 2022 law that temporarily revived the statute of limitations for adult victims of sexual offenses. Oh alleges that Giuffre sexually assaulted her in 2001 in a massage room at Epstein’s Manhattan home while Epstein watched.1Vicky Ward Investigates. Legal Pressure Was Mounting on Virginia Giuffre
Where the State Case Stood When Giuffre Died
On September 29, 2023, Justice Arthur F. Engoron dismissed Oh’s Adult Survivors Act claim. He ruled that under the 2021 START Act, Giuffre, as a trafficking victim, lacked the agency and autonomy to commit the sexual offenses Oh alleged, and that holding her liable would be “contrary not only to the plain language of the statutes, but to the spirit and legislative intent of the START Act.”3TLC Law LLC. Press Release for VG
Oh appealed. The Appellate Division, First Department, unanimously reversed, holding that the START Act does not insulate a trafficking victim from civil liability for intentional acts against another person. Then, on April 7, 2025, the same appellate court denied Giuffre’s motion to dismiss the reinstated claim, letting the case proceed.1Vicky Ward Investigates. Legal Pressure Was Mounting on Virginia Giuffre4Rina Oh Epstein Files. About Rina Oh Seventeen days later, Giuffre died at her farm in Neergabby, Western Australia. She was 41.5NBC News. Virginia Giuffre, One of Jeffrey Epstein’s Most Prominent Abuse Survivors, Dies
Why the Cases Are Stalled
Neither lawsuit can advance until Giuffre’s estate has a fiduciary who can be substituted as the defendant. That appointment is tied up in a separate proceeding in the Western Australia Supreme Court, where the courts are being asked to decide whether an unsigned document constitutes a valid will. Lawyer Ian Torrington Blatchford is serving as interim administrator. Giuffre’s adult sons are challenging a claim by Giuffre’s former lawyer and former carer to be recognized as executors.6The Guardian. Virginia Giuffre’s Sons Deny Unsigned Document Is Their Mother’s Will
Until that dispute resolves and a fiduciary is confirmed, no one has authority to litigate on the estate’s behalf, and the New York courts have nothing to move against.
What Oh’s Side Says Comes Next
Oh’s attorney, Alexander M. Dudelson, told journalist Vicky Ward that once a fiduciary is appointed, “we intend on proceeding with the adjudication of Ms. Oh’s meritorious claims.”7Vicky Ward. Legal Pressure Was Mounting on Virginia Giuffre The defamation case still carries Giuffre’s unresolved anti-SLAPP counterclaim, and the state sexual assault case sits at the post-appeal stage where discovery would normally begin. Whichever fiduciary is eventually appointed will inherit both.