(Photo : David Parker - WPA Pool/ Getty Images)
The Duke Of York Visits The Offices Of AkzoNobel
SLOUGH, UNITED KINGDON - APRIL 13: Prince Andrew, Duke of York visits the AkzoNobel Decorative Paints facility at Slough in Berkshire on April 13, 2015 in Slough, England. The Duke is Chairman of Trustees and this is his first public engagement since a US judge ordered that sex allegations made against him, be struck from the record. (Photo by David Parker - WPA Pool/ Getty Images)
Prince Andrew has been served with court documents once more, accuser Virginia Giuffre's lawyer said. Yesterday, documents were forwarded to Andrew Brettler, the Duke of York's US lawyer, in Los Angeles.
The High Court has given the Duke of York's legal team seven days to appeal the court's decision to start informing Prince Andrew about the US civil lawsuit against him. Last Wednesday, the High Court in London granted Virginia Giuffre's attorneys' request to formally contact the Duke about the legal proceedings in the United States.
Prince Andrew is served accuser's sexual assault lawsuit
The Duke of York is being sued by Giuffre for allegedly sexually assaulting her when she was 17. However, Prince Andrew denies the allegations, Express.co reported. During the first pre-trial hearing of the civil lawsuit in New York on September 13, the topic of whether Prince Andrew had been told about the case - known as service of processes - was challenged.
Papers were sent to the defendant's last known address and documents were also sent via Royal Mail, according to David Boies, who represents Giuffre. The duke's attorney, Andrew Brettler, said the royal's legal team challenged the legality of the duke's service to date and maintained he had not been properly served under the UK or international law.
Per MIRROR, Giuffre's lawyers presented multiple receipts showing FedEx delivery in court filings issued Wednesday. Cesar Sepulveda filed an affidavit in Giuffre's federal lawsuit in Manhattan last week, stating that he served the papers to Prince Andrew on August 27 at his Royal Lodge. He described how prior attempts to send over the documents, in which Queen's 61-year-old son is accused of first-degree rape linked to late pedophile Jeffrey Epstein's sex network, were consistently refused.
However, Prince Andrew's lawyers claimed that they had not been filed legally, citing the UK courts' approval of a method of serving the Prince. Brettler has called sexual assault claims made in New York "baseless, non-viable, and perhaps unlawful."
According to the lawsuit, she was compelled to have sexual relations with the prince against her will and is accused of rape in the first degree. During a pre-trial conference call last week, he said that a 2009 settlement between Giuffre and Epstein acquitted the duke of "any and all liability." He further claimed that the duke had not received adequate notice of the proceedings.
Duke of York fails to meet his new granddaughter
Prince Andrew did not get to meet his new grandchild. He missed out on seeing Princess Beatrice's first child because he is "hiding out at Balmoral" to dodge the legal issues he is facing, according to The Sun.
Princess Beatrice's mother Sarah Ferguson went from the Queen's Scottish retreat to meet her new grandchild although the Scottish castle is 800 kilometers away from London's Chelsea and Westminister hospital where she gave birth. Prince Andrew is expected to stay in Balmoral for three weeks as a result of the legal problems.
The 2.7 kg infant girl's name is yet to be revealed by Beatrice. In a statement, the princess and her husband, Edorardo Mapelli Mozzi, said they were "delighted." In July 2020, the couple married. The new addition to the royal family is the 11th in line to the throne.
Related Article: Prince Andrew's Lawyers Claim He Has Not Received Legal Papers as US Court Holds Pre-Trial Hearing Over Sex Abuse Allegations
