The executors of the estate of Jeffrey Epstein said on Thursday they had asked a judge to approve the creation of a proposed fund to compensate women the financier was accused of having sexually abused.

The executors, Darren Indyke and Richard Kahn, said in a statement that the fund would create a “voluntary, confidential, non-adversarial alternative to litigation”.

Epstein, 66, died by hanging himself in his Manhattan jail cell on 10 August, two days after signing a will and putting his estimated $577m estate into a trust. He had been arrested in July on federal sex trafficking charges, to which he pleaded not guilty.

His estate is facing about a dozen lawsuits from women who say Epstein sexually abused them, many while they were underage.

The proposed compensation fund, which must be approved by a US Virgin Islands court, would be overseen by administrators including Jordana Feldman and Kenneth Feinberg, who have worked on compensation funds for victims affected by 9/11.

Women who choose not to take part in the program would still be allowed to pursue their claims against the estate in court, according to Thursday’s statement. It was not immediately clear how much money would be available for the victim compensation fund.

The attorney Roberta Kaplan, who represents one of the women suing the estate, expressed skepticism of the plan.

“Given that this latest fund was launched without our input or consent, we will keep an open mind because we are supportive of attempts to fairly compensate these survivors, but both the estate and the new administrators have a lot to prove,” she said in a press release.

Another lawyer, Brad Edwards, said the estate should start by committing all of Epstein’s assets to the compensation fund.

“If the estate is placing all estate assets into the claims program for victims, then it is a step in the right direction,” said Edwards, who represents multiple alleged victims. “In the meantime, we intend to get the filed cases to trial quickly. Either way, justice for our clients, without delay, is our goal.“

Following his arrest in July, Epstein pleaded not guilty to sex trafficking charges involving dozens of underage girls at his mansions on Manhattan’s Upper East Side and in Palm Beach, Florida, over several years.

He had escaped federal prosecution by pleading guilty in 2008 to Florida state prostitution charges, an agreement now widely considered too lenient.

Even with his death, federal prosecutors in New York have continued to investigate the allegations against Epstein. There is also a related investigation in Paris, where accusers are complaining police haven’t done enough to track down potential witnesses.

There also were reports on Thursday fueling conspiracy theories that Epstein did not take his own life, including one saying the first letters of 23 tweets sent by an Arizona congressman spelled out “Epstein didn’t kill himself.”

And in an interview with the Miami Herald, Epstein’s brother was quoted as saying a medical examiner was wrong in concluding his sibling killed himself.

The financier once counted Donald Trump and Bill Clinton as friends. They have not been accused of wrongdoing.