US court to unseal confidential 2009 deal between Jeffrey Epstein & Virginia Giuffre

In a major development, a New York court on Monday will unseal a confidential 2009 deal between convicted child sex offender Jeffrey Epstein and Virginia Giuffre. It is to mention that lawyers of UK Prince Andrew, who “unequivocally denies” the claims made by Giuffre, believe that her settlement with Epstein could shield him from her civil lawsuit accusing him of sexual abuse in 2001. The agreement, of which details were redacted from the court filing by Andrew’s attorneys, will be the grounds for the sexual assault lawsuit’s dismissal. 

In the court documents, Giuffre has claimed that she was a victim of sex trafficking and abuse by Epstein from the age of 16. She has said that part of the abuse involved being let out by powerful men, including UK Queen Elizabeth’s son Prince Andrew. Giuffre has accused the Duke of sexually assaulting her on three occasions when she was under the age of 18. 

Now, according to The Guardian, following the release of the unsealed documents, attorneys of Prince Andrew will argue that the settlement deal between Giuffre and Epstein means she cannot take action against the Duke of York. They have said that they “unequivocally” deny the claims made by Giuffre. Lawyers of Virginia Giuffre, on the other hand, have dismissed the attempts to halt the civil case as just another in a series of tried attempts by the Duke of York to “duck and dodge the legal merits of the case”. 

What happens if Prince Andrew loses the civil case? 

According to a report by the Sunday Times, the Prince could lose his 'Duke of York' title if he loses the case filed against him. As per the report, other possibilities being discussed by the Royal household include placing the embattled royal into an "internal exile" and asking him to surrender any remaining ties to charities. In 2019, the Duke took a break from royal duties, including most of his charity activity, for the time being.

"It would be difficult to persuade Queen Elizabeth II to remove the title of Duke of York, which was held by her father, George VI, before he became king, and which she conferred on her favourite son. However, he could not keep the sanctity of the title," insiders told Sunday Times. However, a spokesperson of Buckingham Palace refuted such claims. This is nothing but just a baseless assumption. We would not like to comment further on a matter which is still in the court," he stated as per Sputnik. 

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