Virginia Giuffre's Lawyers Sure That 2009 Case Has No Get-Out Clause For Prince Andrew, Media Says

The Duke of York's legal team has previously argued that the royal could be immune from all litigation due to the settlement Virginia Giuffre and US financier Jeffrey Epstein struck in 2009. Giuffre has accused Prince Andrew of having sex with her when she was an underage girl. The 61-year-old has denied the allegations.

Virginia Giuffre's lawyers are so certain that the 2009 settlement with Jeffrey Epstein has no get-out clause for Prince Andrew that they handed a copy of the document to the Duke of York's legal team, the Daily Mail has reported, citing court documents it viewed.

According to the newspaper, Mrs Giuffre's lawyers received the papers after having filed a request to unseal them. Upon examining them they came to the conclusion that the settlement doesn't protect the royal from litigation and hence decided to share them with Prince Andrew's legal team.

The Duke of York's lawyers have previously argued that the settlement may protect the 61-year-old "from any and all liability".

Accusations, New Strategy, and 'Inconsistencies' in Virginia Giuffre's Narrative

Virginia Giuffre is one of the alleged sex slaves of Jeffrey Epstein, a US financier who rubbed shoulders with the world's most powerful people – prime ministers, presidents, billionaires, and royals. Mrs Giuffre claims that she became acquainted with Epstein after she was recruited in her teenage years as a masseuse by his girlfriend Ghislaine Maxwell, a well-known UK socialite and daughter of billionaire Robert Maxwell.

The job offer as a masseuse turned out to be a ruse and Mrs Giuffre, back then known as Virginia Roberts, was turned into a sex slave, who slept with Epstein and his powerful friends, she alleged. One of those friends was purportedly Prince Andrew.

Mrs Giuffre claims that when she was just 17 years old she was trafficked by Epstein and Maxwell to London, where she was forced to have sex with the Duke of York. She alleges that the royal slept with her at least two more times without her consent.

Prince Andrew has categorically denied the accusations, saying that he has an alibi on the day the alleged sexual intercourse with Giuffre occurred in London and said he had no recollection of ever meeting her.

However, the veracity of the royal's remarks has been questioned as there is at least one photo showing the prince standing next to a young Giuffre and Maxwell, with Andrew's hand on the girl's waist.

Prince Andrew, Virginia Roberts Giuffre, and Ghislaine Maxwell. This photo was included in an affidavit in which Giuffre alleged that she was directed to have sex with Andrew

© Photo : Florida Southern District Court

London resident Shukri Walker claims to have witnessed the Duke of York dancing with Virginia Giuffre at a nightclub.

For a long time the duke and his legal team have been accused of stonewalling the case. Lawyers for Virginia Giuffre claimed that the Duke of York was hiding in his mansion, preventing them from serving papers on him. Recently, the Daily Mail reported that his legal team had adopted a new strategy and the royal himself intends to fight back to clear his name. He has since hired several lawyers, who previously represented Hollywood's crème de la crème.

According to The Sun, citing a source familiar with the proceedings, Andrew's team will focus on any "inconsistencies" in Mrs Giuffre's narrative.

"By launching this civil case, Mrs Giuffre has actively invited legal scrutiny of her own version of events. This provides an opportunity for the duke's team to properly scrutinise the multiple inconsistencies in her narrative that have emerged over the years, and you can expect to see a rigorous defence of all her allegations", the source told the newspaper.