What has happened?
In an unexpected twist to a case that has been the subject of intense media scrutiny, documents submitted to a civil court in New York on Tuesday reveal that Prince Andrew plans to settle with Virginia Giuffre. She had claimed she was trafficked to have sex with the Queen’s second son on three occasions when she was 17, a claim he has consistently denied.
Prior to the settlement, the case was in the “discovery” phase, meaning that several witnesses, including Andrew and Giuffre, were lined up to give depositions. A civil sex assault trial was scheduled to follow between September and December.
What were the allegations?
Andrew was reportedly introduced to disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein by British media heiress Ghislaine Maxwell in 1999. Epstein killed himself in his jail cell after he was arrested for sex trafficking girls as young as 14 in 2019. Maxwell, Epstein’s co-conspirator, was recently convicted as a sex trafficker for luring girls into his orbit.
Giuffre, who is now 38, has alleged that Andrew met her in the Tramp nightclub in London in 2001 and sexually assaulted her at Maxwell’s home in Belgravia, London. She said he assaulted her on two further occasions, at Epstein’s New York home and at an “orgy” on his private island in the Caribbean. Giuffre has also accused Andrew of engaging in sexual misconduct on other occasions as an associate of Epstein’s.
It wasn’t until 2015 that details became public, when court documents filed in Florida in which Giuffre accused Epstein of trafficking her also alleged that Andrew had sexually assaulted her.
Was the case headed for court?
In August last year, Giuffre filed a suit in New York against the royal, citing battery and intentional infliction of emotional distress.
Andrew attempted to block the lawsuit on grounds that Giuffre’s $500,000 2009 settlement with Epstein shielded him after this was unsealed on 3 January. However on 12 January Judge Lewis Kaplan ruled that the suit could go forward. Kaplan also rejected Andrew’s claims that Giuffre’s civil allegations lacked necessary specificity.
Andrew’s former assistant, Robert Olney, and Shukri Walker, who claims to have seen Andrew in the Tramp nightclub, were to give their depositions following Andrew’s in March. Giuffre had not yet set a date in court for when she would give a detailed account of what happened.
Andrew’s legal team had asked to question Giuffre’s husband and her psychologist, claiming that she “may suffer from false memories”. Giuffre’s lawyer has said separately that their strategy was “to attack her character, her moral credibility”.
A date in March had been set for Andrew to give evidence under oath.
Was this expected?
Absolutely not. Andrew has strenuously denied the accusations until this point and has said he would never settle. Last month, his lawyers said he was not a co-conspirator of Epstein, demanded a jury trial and listed several reasons why they believe Giuffre’s case should not stand.
Giuffre’s lawyer had also insisted she wanted the case heard in court and that she would be unlikely to accept a “purely financial settlement”. He added that any resolution must “vindicate her and vindicate the other victims”.
It is thought the settlement will come as a relief to the Queen, since the royal family had feared the court case would overshadow platinum jubilee celebrations this year.
What does the settlement entail?
The full details, including the sum that Andrew will pay out, are not disclosed in the document, but Andrew has agreed to make a “substantial donation” to a charity supporting victims’ rights, and has accepted that Giuffre “suffered as an established victim of abuse”. He makes no admission of liability.
In the document he also commends Giuffre’s bravery and regrets his association with Epstein, stating that Andrew will demonstrate this “by supporting the fight against the evils of sex trafficking, and by supporting its victims”. The text further outlines how Giuffre will dismiss the case once she receives the settlement.
What has the fallout been for Andrew so far?
Andrew’s reputation and standing within the royal family have taken a serious beating.
Andrew stepped back from his public duties as a member of the royal family in 2019 after a disastrous BBC TV interview where he claims he could not have had sex with Giuffre because he was at home after a visit to Pizza Express in Woking. He also attempted to refute Giuffre’s claim that the royal was “sweating profusely all over me” when they met at Tramp, stating he had a “peculiar medical condition which is that I don’t sweat or I didn’t sweat at the time”.
The Queen stripped her son of a range of military affiliations and royal patronages.
