Prince Andrew’s attorneys claim court does not have jurisdiction over Virginia Giuffre lawsuit

CNN

By Brian Vitagliano, CNN

Attorneys for Britain’s Prince Andrew claimed Tuesday that the US court handling a civil lawsuit filed by Virginia Giuffre, in which she accuses the Duke of York of sexual assault, does not have jurisdiction over the case.

A motion filed in the US District Court in Manhattan states, “Ms. Giuffre alleges she is a citizen of the State of Colorado, the evidence demonstrates that she is actually domiciled in Australia, where she has lived for all but two of the past nineteen years.”

Giuffre alleges she was trafficked by Jeffrey Epstein and forced to have sex with his friends, including the prince. She says the assaults happened in London, New York and the US Virgin Islands — and that Andrew was aware that she was 17 years old when the alleged incidents began.

In an earlier motion to dismiss filed on October 29, an attorney for Andrew said he “unequivocally denies Giuffre’s false allegations against him.”

The motion filed Tuesday also asks the court to “order Ms. Giuffre to respond to targeted written discovery requests pertaining to her domicile and submit to a two-hour remote deposition limited to the issue of her domicile.”

CNN has reached out to attorneys for Giuffre and Prince Andrew for comment.

In November, a Manhattan federal judge said Andrew may face a trial date between September and December of 2022 provided the matter is not settled or dismissed.

Oral arguments are set for January 4, when attorneys for Prince Andrew are expected to argue for a dismissal of Giuffre’s civil lawsuit.

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