Details Of A Secret Settlement Protecting Prince Andrew Should Be Made Public, Says Judge
US Judge Loretta Preska has said the details of a secret settlement that could protect Prince Andrew against a lawsuit should be made public.
A settlement dating from 2008 was reached between Jeffrey Epstein and Virginia Giuffre, who alleged the financier had sexually abused her and other women while they were underage.
Prince Andrew’s lawyer, Andrew Brettler, said the deal also protects the prince from a claim brought against him by Giuffre this year.
In August 2021, Giuffre alleged that the prince abused her in 2001, when she was aged 17. Prince Andrew has denied all allegations.
While Brettler previously said Giuffre’s lawsuit was ‘baseless’, it appears the secret settlement could be brought to light as part of the prince’s case.
US District Judge Preska said the secret settlement should be made public on or before December 22, unless there were valid objections from Epstein’s estate, AP News reports.
Judge Preska said the court questions ‘whether any proper purpose would be served by the continued secrecy of the document save, perhaps, the dollar amount the settlement provided it for.’
Prince Andrew’s legal team have previously asked a judge to throw out the civil lawsuit, as some of the alleged offences took place outside of New York, as well as arguing that Guiffre was over the legal age of consent.
Giuffre alleged that the incidents took place in Epstein’s New York home, in London and on his private island in the US Virgin Islands.
The civil lawsuit was filled under the New York Child Victims’ Act (2019), which temporarily allowed survivors to sue those who’d allegedly abused them if they were under 18 years old at the time of abuse.
The prince’s lawyers argued Giuffre’s claims were invalid as she was 17 years old at the time, the age of consent in New York.
They argued:
While lack of consent is established as a matter of law for individuals who were under the age of seventeen at the time of the alleged underlying sexual offense, the issue of consent is unsettled with regard to those – like Giuffre – who were between the ages of seventeen and eighteen.
5 months agoThe case is currently ongoing.
If you have been affected by any of the issues in this article and wish to speak to someone in confidence, contact the Rape Crisis England and Wales helpline on 0808 802 9999 between 12pm–2.30pm and 7pm– 9.30pm every day. Alternatively, you can contact Victim Support free on 08 08 16 89 111 available 24/7, every day of the year, including Christmas
Male Survivors Partnership is available to support adult male survivors of sexual abuse and rape. You can contact the organisation on their website or on their free helpline 0808 800 5005, open 9am–5pm Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays; 8am–8pm Tuesdays and Thursdays; 10am–2pm Saturdays
Topics: News, Jeffrey Epstein, Now, Prince Andrew, Virginia Giuffre
