Attorney General William Barr on Monday announced his recusal from the high-profile Jeffrey Epstein case because his former law firm once represented the convicted sex offender.

A senior partner at Kirkland and Ellis, the law firm in question, was one of a number of high-profile lawyers to represent Epstein when he agreed an infamous plea deal in 2008.

"I am recused from that matter because one of the law firms that represented Epstein long ago was a firm I subsequently joined for a period of time," Barr told reporters in South Carolina. Earlier today, federal prosecutors in the Southern District of New York indicted Epstein on felony charges related to sex trafficking minors, including one count of conspiracy to engage in sex trafficking of minors.

Following Barr's comments, several prominent people following the case noted that Barr's headmaster father, Donald Barr, had once hired Epstein to teach at the private Dalton School in New York. According to Law and Crime, Epstein taught calculus and physics at the school from 1973 to 1975.

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During his confirmation hearing in January, Sen. Ben Sasse (R-Neb.) asked Barr whether he would conduct a "full and thorough investigation" into the Justice Department's handling of Epstein's case, in particular, the non-prosecution agreement from 2008.

"Senator, I have to recuse myself from Kirkland & Ellis matters, I am told," Barr said at the time. "And I think Kirkland & Ellis was maybe involved in that case, so I need to sort out exactly what my role can be. I will say that if I'm confirmed I'll make sure your questions are answered on this case."

According to Law and Crime, Kirkland & Ellis were involved in the Epstein case and the firm's senior partner Jay Lefkowitz is among the list of notable attorneys, which also includes Harvard professor Alan Dershowitz, who have once represented the billionaire.

In 2008, the federal investigation into Epstein came to an end after he struck a controversial deal with prosecutors, pleading guilty to two Florida state prostitution charges, despite being accused of sexually abusing more than 30 minors. His possible life sentence was watered down to 13-months in Palm Beach County Jail, financial settlements to multiple victims and a requirement he register as a sex offender.

The deal also granted immunity to Epstein's co-conspirators.

Secretary of Labor, Alexander Acosta, reportedly oversaw the deal and has since defended the agreement as appropriate under the circumstances. In February, a federal judge ruled that Acosta illegally kept details of Epstein's plea deal from his victims.