Leon Black, the billionaire co-founder of Apollo Global Management, submitted a detailed response on 19 July to a lawsuit that accused him of forcing a woman into a years-long abusive relationship, roundly denying the allegations and calling the complaint “a work of fiction”.

Guzel Ganieva, a Russian immigrant and former model, sued Black on 1 June, accusing him of defamation and alleging he raped and harassed her. She said he forced her to endure a “cycle of intimidation, abuse and humiliation”.