(Trends Wide) — A federal judge in New York has denied a motion to dismiss a civil lawsuit against Prince Andrew brought by Virginia Giuffre, a woman who alleges she was a victim of sex trafficking with the prince when she was a minor.
In his ruling, Judge Lewis Kaplan wrote: “Ms Giuffre’s complaint is neither ‘unintelligible’ nor ‘vague’ nor ‘ambiguous’. He alleges discrete incidents of sexual abuse in particular circumstances in three identifiable locations. Identify to whom he attributes this sexual abuse.”
Buckingham Palace said of the judge’s decision that it “will not comment on legal matters.”
Giuffre alleged in the lawsuit that the late tycoon Jeffrey Epstein trafficked her and forced her to have sex with his friends, including Prince Andrew, and that Andrew knew she was underage (she was 17) at the time.
Prince Andrew denied the accusations against him.
Giuffre brought her case under the Child Victims Act, a New York state law enacted in 2019 that expanded the statute of limitations in child sexual abuse cases to give survivors more opportunities to seek justice.
His attorneys argued that his lawsuit violated the terms of his 2009 settlement agreement with Epstein in Florida, in which he agreed to a “general release” of the claims against Epstein and others. That agreement, made public last week, shows that Epstein paid Giuffre $500,000 to drop the case without admitting liability or fault. The prince’s name does not appear explicitly as part.
However, Giuffre’s lawyer, David Boies, argued that the agreement is irrelevant to his claim against the prince, noting that Andrew did not know him at the time and that it did not apply to him.
(Trends Wide) — A federal judge in New York has denied a motion to dismiss a civil lawsuit against Prince Andrew brought by Virginia Giuffre, a woman who alleges she was a victim of sex trafficking with the prince when she was a minor.
In his ruling, Judge Lewis Kaplan wrote: “Ms Giuffre’s complaint is neither ‘unintelligible’ nor ‘vague’ nor ‘ambiguous’. He alleges discrete incidents of sexual abuse in particular circumstances in three identifiable locations. Identify to whom he attributes this sexual abuse.”
Buckingham Palace said of the judge’s decision that it “will not comment on legal matters.”
Giuffre alleged in the lawsuit that the late tycoon Jeffrey Epstein trafficked her and forced her to have sex with his friends, including Prince Andrew, and that Andrew knew she was underage (she was 17) at the time.
Prince Andrew denied the accusations against him.
Giuffre brought her case under the Child Victims Act, a New York state law enacted in 2019 that expanded the statute of limitations in child sexual abuse cases to give survivors more opportunities to seek justice.
His attorneys argued that his lawsuit violated the terms of his 2009 settlement agreement with Epstein in Florida, in which he agreed to a “general release” of the claims against Epstein and others. That agreement, made public last week, shows that Epstein paid Giuffre $500,000 to drop the case without admitting liability or fault. The prince’s name does not appear explicitly as part.
However, Giuffre’s lawyer, David Boies, argued that the agreement is irrelevant to his claim against the prince, noting that Andrew did not know him at the time and that it did not apply to him.