Prince Andrew has reached a settlement in the civil sex claim filed by Virginia Giuffre in the US.
The unexpected development was disclosed in a document submitted to court on Tuesday. Andrew has agreed to make a “substantial donation” to a charity, and has accepted that she “suffered as an established victim of abuse”. He commended Giuffre’s bravery.
The document added that the prince also regretted his association with the financier Jeffrey Epstein, who took his life in prison while facing trial for sex trafficking.
The move is a remarkable turnaround for Andrew, who had pledged to fight to clear his name in court. He has always denied having a sexual relationship with Giuffre when she was 17.
The settlement will come as a relief to the Queen, who had reportedly helped pay her son’s legal fees. The royal family had feared that a court case would overshadow the Queen’s platinum jubilee celebrations this year.
Last month, Prince Andrew denied he was a co-conspirator of Epstein, and insisted on a jury trial in Giuffre’s sexual abuse lawsuit against him. “Prince Andrew hereby demands a trial by jury on all causes of action asserted in the complaint,” his lawyers wrote in court papers. Andrew also denied that Epstein “trafficked girls to him”.
Giuffre had also insisted she wanted the civil case heard in court rather than settled.
Andrew had earlier tried to get Giuffre’s case dismissed, arguing that she had waived her right to sue him under a previously secret $500,000 (£360,000) settlement she made with Epstein.
The prince was left facing a sensational court case this year in which details of his personal life would have been raked over and his denials of ever meeting Giuffre challenged.
The case risked monumental reputational damage for the Queen and the royal family, even though Andrew had already been stripped of all his royal patronages and military affiliations with the Queen’s approval. He had also agreed to stop using the style His Royal Highness in an official capacity,
Andrew was close friends with Ghislaine Maxwell, who was convicted in December of charges including sex trafficking and conspiracy relating to the recruitment of teenage girls for Epstein to sexually abuse.
More here: Prince Andrew and Virginia Giuffre reach ‘settlement in principle’