Brad Karp steps down as chairman of Paul Weiss; Scott Barshay named

Businessinsider reports Brad Karp stepped down as chairman of Paul Weiss on Wednesday amid scrutiny over his ties to the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. Scott Barshay was named the new chairman of the global firm, which has more than 1,000 attorneys, "effective immediately," the firm said in a news release.

The shakeup came two days after Paul Weiss said in a statement, as reported by The New York Times, that Karp "attended two group dinners in New York City" with Epstein and "had a small number of social interactions by email, all of which he regrets." Karp is among the elite names to appear in 3 million documents released by the Justice Department from its investigation into Epstein.

Karp has been at Paul Weiss for four decades and has been chair of the firm since 2008. "Leading Paul, Weiss for the past 18 years has been the honor of my professional life," Karp was quoted as saying in the release, and "Mr. Karp will continue to focus his full-time attention to client service at the firm," the release said.