NEW YORK —
Legal professionals for Prince Andrew requested a New York decide Friday to throw out a lawsuit accusing the prince of sexually abusing an American when she was 17, saying the prince “by no means sexually abused or assaulted” the plaintiff.
In papers filed in Manhattan federal courtroom, an legal professional for Andrew stated the plaintiff, Virginia Giuffre, might be a sufferer of sexual abuse by the hands of financier Jeffrey Epstein.
“Nonetheless, and with out diminishing the hurt suffered on account of Epstein’s alleged misconduct, Prince Andrew by no means sexually abused or assaulted Giuffre. He unequivocally denies Giuffre’s false allegations towards him,” in accordance with arguments signed by legal professional Andrew Brettler.
Brettler requested that the lawsuit be thrown out or that legal professionals for Giuffre be required to refile the lawsuit with a extra definitive assertion of her allegations.
“Accusing a member of the world’s finest identified royal household of significant misconduct has helped Giuffre create a media frenzy on-line and within the conventional press. It’s unlucky, however simple, that sensationalism and innuendo have prevailed over the reality,” the submitting stated.
“Giuffre has initiated this baseless lawsuit towards Prince Andrew to realize one other payday at his expense and on the expense of these closest to him. Epstein’s abuse of Giuffre doesn’t justify her public marketing campaign towards Prince Andrew,” the written arguments stated.
The submission additionally challenged a brief New York state legislation that has since expired that permit survivors of intercourse abuse incurred throughout childhood to sue their alleged abusers irrespective of how a lot time had handed.
Giuffre claimed in her August lawsuit that the prince abused her on a number of events in 2001. Andrew has stated even earlier than the courtroom papers had been filed Friday that he by no means had intercourse along with her.
The Related Press doesn’t usually establish individuals who say they’re victims of sexual assault until they select to come back ahead publicly, as Giuffre has.
An legal professional for Giuffre, Sigrid McCawley, referred to as Andrew’s request to dismiss the lawsuit “outrageous” and credited Giuffre for serving to to disclose Epstein’s alleged intercourse trafficking that they are saying Andrew participated in.
As regards to cash, McCawley stated, “the one get together to this litigation utilizing cash to his profit is Prince Andrew.”
Brettler, who has referred to as the lawsuit “baseless,” had included within the arguments a replica of a 2009 settlement settlement that he believes protects his consumer from being sued.
In line with the arguments on Andrew’s behalf, Giuffre’s 2009 settlement of intercourse trafficking and sexual abuse claims towards Epstein included a common launch of all claims towards him and quite a few different people and entities.
“To keep away from being dragged into future authorized disputes, Epstein negotiated for this broad launch, insisting that it cowl any and all individuals who Giuffre recognized as potential targets of future lawsuits, whatever the advantage — or lack thereof — to any such claims,” the papers stated.
The pages of the settlement reached between Giuffre and Epstein had been blacked out after they had been included in Friday’s submission as “Exhibit A.” The financier was discovered useless at age 66 in his cell in 2019 whereas awaiting a intercourse trafficking trial at a New York federal jail. His dying was dominated a suicide.
Earlier this week, Brettler stated in a written submission to the decide that the settlement “releases Prince Andrew and others from any purported legal responsibility arising from the claims Ms. Giuffre asserted towards Prince Andrew right here.”
When he requested that the paperwork be filed underneath seal, Brettler stated neither he nor legal professionals for Giuffre believed that it was essential to preserve the 2009 settlement settlement secret apart from the truth that it’s underneath seal in one other civil litigation in Manhattan federal courtroom.
A listening to within the case is scheduled for subsequent week.
