New York: The whereabouts of Ghislaine Maxwell, the former girlfriend and longtime business associate of Jeffrey Epstein, has been largely a mystery since the registered sex offender was arrested last summer on sex trafficking charges.

But Maxwell has surfaced with a lawsuit against Epstein's estate, saying the financier, who died last year, had promised to pay her legal fees for any claims from the dozens of women who say she helped him recruit them to give him massages when they were teenagers.

Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell in New York in 2005. Credit:Getty Images

Maxwell brought her suit in Superior Court in the US Virgin Islands, where Epstein's estate is being probated. The suit was filed on Friday, but not docketed until late on Tuesday, US time.

The lawsuit was a rare public movement by Maxwell, who has kept a low profile since Epstein's death in August in federal custody. She remains a central figure in the investigation by federal prosecutors in Manhattan who are looking into associates of Epstein. Investigators are trying to determine who may have assisted him in recruiting young girls and women to be sexually abused and who may have moved money to further his efforts.