Kathryn Ruemmler, Goldman Sachs's general counsel, resigned on Thursday in the wake of the Justice Department's release of emails and other material depicting her long friendship with sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. Ruemmler maintained for years that she had a strictly professional relationship with Epstein, a convicted sex offender. But emails, text messages and photographs released in January show instead years of friendship. Ruemmler was mentioned in more than 10,000 of the documents released by the Justice Department.
The relationship between Goldman Sachs's top lawyer, Kathryn Ruemmler, and the late sexual predator Jeffrey Epstein is no longer something you can politely describe as "unfortunate optics." The latest dump of Epstein files reveals thousands of communications between the two, and they paint a picture, not of arm's-length professionalism, but of questionable coziness from someone whose literal job description is reputational risk.
Let me dissect what's going on - and why lawyers and boards should be paying rapt attention. For years, environmental, social and governance (ESG) considerations were relegated to "nice to have" slide decks at annual meetings. Those days are over. Canadian companies are now operating in a climate where public perception and values‑based scrutiny moves markets, affects customer loyalty and triggers boycotts or protests, eroding brand equity.
Workers in industries labelled as reputationally risky, as well as a broad range of religious and ethnic groups, have been denied access to financial services. United States President Donald Trump's $5bn lawsuit against JPMorgan Chase resurfaces his accusations of debanking the act of removing a person or organisation's access to financial services. The complaint, filed in a Florida court on Thursday, alleges that the bank singled him out for political reasons and closed several of his accounts.
Although we've been told that A.I. is poised to "revolutionize" work, at the moment it seems to be doing something else entirely: spreading chaos. All throughout American offices, A.I. platforms like ChatGPT are delivering answers that sound right even when they aren't, transcription tools that turn meetings into works of fiction, and documents that look polished on the surface but are riddled with factual errors and missing nuance.
Small details often shape how people view a business, and one unexpected fall inside a store or office can quickly shift that perception. Many companies overlook the idea that a single misstep can lead to serious injuries, financial stress and long term reputational issues. While organisations spend resources on branding, client retention and digital visibility, they sometimes ignore basic safety features that protect customers and employees.
Their agents claim it can increase their clients' profile and show off their human side. Bronagh Monahan, cofounder of Mon Rae Management, which specialises in representing YouTubers, said: These things are generally for charity so there's a nice halo effect for appearing. It's the taking part that counts. If you get something wrong, it shows you are fallible which makes you popular.
Scooter Braun tried to buy OnlyFans but came down with a bit of anxiety when it was time to perform, according to a new report in The music mogul, longtime Taylor Swift antagonist, and current Sydney Sweeney agonist (that's a joke for my knows-a-bit-of-chemistry homies) led a purchasing group that valued OnlyFans at $8 billion. Braun was set to serve as the "face and brains" of the porn-adjacent platform - because after all, what OnlyFans user wouldn't want to close their eyes and think of that face?
The example was harmless. But it neatly captured the anxiety running through marketing departments right now: where's the boundary between automation that helps and automation that hurts? A made-up RV is one thing. An AI-generated image that shows a soda brand as the cause of rotting teeth is another. Those are the kinds of errors that can erode years of brand building in an instant.
Since taking office for a second time, Trump has overseen massive changes to the physical features of the White House, including a gold-drenched Oval Office overhaul, a paved-over lawn in the Rose Garden, and now a major demolition of the entire East Wing to make way for a massive ballroom. MSNBC was among the outlets that published a long list of donors funding the project, provided by the White House a list that included Comcast.
Amber Dragon (Fund). Public disclosures by international financial institutions describe the fund's profile: IFC notes that Amber Dragon focuses on rebuilding critical infrastructure, targeting €350 million, while the EIB confirms its participation and investment mandate in Ukraine's energy, transport, and digital infrastructure sectors. Separately, the EBRD has published a project description page regarding potential participation in the fund (up to €60 million). Together, this defines the institutional "umbrella" contour.
For most people, personal indiscretions-such as having an extramarital affair or abusing drugs-are a private matter. But for CEOs, even scandals unrelated to business create doubt about their judgment, integrity, and leadership. The result is usually career-ending for the CEO, research shows, and can create lasting harm for the company. We found that CEOs overwhelmingly exit in the wake of personal scandals-five times as often as CEOs who commit financial misconduct do, in fact. And strong business performance doesn't tend to offer protection.
You've spent hours updating your résumé, nailed the interview phase and thought the offer was locked in. Then the silence hits. Here's the thing - the reason may have nothing to do with your skill set - and everything to do with your social media. Employers are no longer just glancing at applications; they're dissecting digital lives. According to a 2018 CareerBuilder survey, 70% of employers screen candidates' social media before hiring, and more than half have rejected applicants based on what they found.
