Prince Andrew: The Long and Embarrassing Legal Ordeal Ahead of Prince Andrew

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When a Manhattan judge rejected Prince Andrew’s efforts to dismiss Virginia Joffrey’s lawsuit against him on Wednesday, it was a victory for the longtime accused.

Judge Lewis Kaplan’s ruling also means that the embattled monarch will remain embroiled in lengthy – and embarrassing – legal proceedings for the foreseeable future.

“This is a huge development because it probably removes the biggest legal hurdle Virginia Joffrey and her team have had to take her case to a jury,” said Neama Rahmani, a former federal prosecutor and one of the founders of West Coast Trial Lawyers.

Joffrey, 38, has long claimed that she was forced to have sex with the Duke of York at the age of 17 by two of his associates – disgraced American financier Jeffrey Epstein and British socialist Ghislaine Maxwell. Andrew’s lawyers did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Kaplan’s decision.

Epstein, a convicted sex offender, committed suicide in a New York prison in the summer of 2019 while awaiting trial for sex trafficking. Maxwell was found guilty on December 29 of sex trafficking and related charges for bringing teenage girls to Epstein.

Joffrey first alleged in legal papers filed in 2015 that she was forced to have sex with the prince at Epstein’s Palace in New York, on his private island in the US Virgin Islands, and at Maxwell’s home in London.

Joffrey filed the civil lawsuit against the prince in Manhattan federal court in August last year, also accusing him of battery and intentionally causing mental distress.

Andrew denies the allegations. His legal team asked Kaplan to dispose of Geoffrey’s suit for several reasons.

His attorneys argued that the 2009 settlement between Joffrey and Epstein protected him from her lawsuit. They referred to a provision that released “second parties and any other person or entity that would have been included as a potential defendant … from all and all kinds of Virginia’s proceedings and procedures.” [Giuffre], including state or federal, grounds and causes of action.” Andrew was not named in this settlement.

Andrew also argued that Joffrey’s claims were too vague, meaning he would not be able to adequately defend himself against these allegations. Kaplan dismissed the allegation, based on vague grounds, and said it would be too soon to decide what exactly the 2009 settlement meant for Andrew.

“Judge Kaplan said it’s a matter of fact, and questions of the facts go to the jury,” Rahmani said. If it was clear that the settlement agreement included the prince, he could have dismissed the case, but he chose not to. The intent of the settlement agreement is something that the jurors have to decide,” he said.

Rahmani noted that “the vast majority of civil cases are settled for a number of reasons.”

Virginia Joffrey, here with attorney David Boyce, first alleged in legal papers filed in 2015 that she was forced to have sex with Prince Andrew. Photo: Shannon Stapleton/Reuters

Victims may not want to testify in public about sexual assault. Meanwhile, defendants don’t want to face verdicts if the jury finds in favor of the defendants — nor the continued onslaught of bad press that could escalate with a public trial.

However, Rahmani believes that this is the rare civil case that is more likely to be brought to trial rather than adjudicated. Geoffrey previously settled “for what I would say is a tiny sum – a symbolic sum, pennies on a dollar” for a sexual assault lawsuit against mega-millionaire Epstein.

And unlike many others, Giuffre has publicly discussed her shock. Rahmani said she did not testify at Maxwell’s trial, so “this is her only chance to tell her story in a very public way.”

The Prince may also oppose the settlement for his own reasons. “Prince Andrew has denied this ever happened, so if he gets into any settlement — even if there is no admission of responsibility, even if he tries to keep it secret, even if not for legal reasons — it is for public relations reasons, I believe,” Rahmani said. This case will go forward.”

“There are a number of factors that make this civil case so unique, which is why I think it is far more likely to be brought to court than other civil cases.”

Andrew could resist Kaplan’s ruling, either by asking the judge to reconsider, or asking the Court of Appeals to review the decision, even though the odds are not in his favour.

“The appeal will be very difficult,” defense attorney Julie Rendelman said. “It has been made clear that the issues raised by Prince Andrew’s lawyers are a matter of fact rather than a matter of law, and therefore, there is a matter for the jury, not the judge, to decide.”

“When you look at the decision that the judge wrote, it covers all the grounds in terms of all the issues raised, and I think especially when it comes to a question of facts for a jury, the appellate court is hard to move around in that decision-making process.”

While some deadlines have been scheduled in the case — including, for example, a July 28 date for the two sides to submit a pre-trial motion — they must be taken into account. Filings and Evidence Submissions can stimulate more affidavits and Evidence Submissions, which incentivize extended deadlines.

Andrew claims that on the night Joffrey claims she was forced to have sex with him in London, he brought his daughter Beatrice to a children’s party in the late afternoon at Pizza Express in Woking, Surrey. The prince insists that he was then at home with his children all night.

Information and support for anyone affected by rape or sexual assault issues is available from the following organizations. In the United States, Rainn offers support at 800-656-4673. In the UK, the Rape Crisis offers support at 0808802 9999. In Australia, support is available at 1800Respect (1800 737732). Other international helplines can be found at ibiblio.org/rcip/internl.html

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