- A federal judge denied Prince Andrew's attempt to dismiss a sexual misconduct lawsuit from Virginia Giuffre.
- Giuffre alleged the Duke of York sexually abused her as part of a sex-trafficking scheme run by Jeffrey Epstein.
- The royal has denied the allegations. The case may now proceed to trial.
A federal judge on Wednesday morning ruled that Virginia Giuffre's sexual abuse lawsuit against Prince Andrew can proceed, dealing a major blow to the royal family member's legal defense.
US District Judge Lewis A. Kaplan ruled that the Duke of York's motion to dismiss the lawsuit was "denied in all respects."
Giuffre filed the lawsuit against Prince Andrew, a former friend of the now-dead pedophile Jeffrey Epstein, in August. She alleged that he sexually abused her on multiple occasions in the 2000s as part of Epstein's sex-trafficking scheme. Prince Andrew has strenuously denied the allegations.
Kaplan oversaw a hearing last week on the royal's attempt to dismiss the lawsuit. His attorneys had argued that a 2009 settlement between Epstein and Giuffre from an earlier lawsuit protected him against further lawsuits from Giuffre, but Kaplan denied that reasoning in Wednesday's ruling.
Giuffre's attorneys have said they want the case to go to trial, but Kaplan's ruling does not mean that she and Prince Andrew cannot reach a settlement before then.
Giuffre is the highest-profile Epstein accuser, having fought through litigation for years against Epstein, his former girlfriend and now-convicted accomplice Ghislaine Maxwell, and Alan Dershowitz, who she has also accused of sexual misconduct. Unsealed documents and depositions obtained for her lawsuits have shed light on the scope of Epstein's sexual abuse, which spanned from his residences in New York, Florida, London, the US Virgin Islands, and a massive ranch he owned in New Mexico.
In his ruling, Kaplan explained that his ruling is based on the interpretation of the law and does not evaluate the facts of Giuffre's case. But the ruling comes a few days after Carolyn Andriano, another Epstein accuser, told The Daily Mail that Giuffre had sent her contemporaneous text messages after sleeping with the royal.
This is a breaking news story. Please check back for updates.
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