The lawyer representing Prince Andrew’s accuser Virginia Roberts is set to quiz the Duke of York in London for up to two days – but says he will not require evidence from his former wife, daughters or the Queen.
David Boies, 80, one of America’s most renowned attorneys, yesterday suggested Andrew will find the experience of being questioned under oath ‘a little uncomfortable’ – but held out the possibility that a financial deal could be done.
Ms Roberts claims in a civil suit that she was trafficked by paedophile financier Jeffrey Epstein and forced to have sex with Andrew on three occasions when she was 17.
David Boies, 80, one of America’s most renowned attorneys, yesterday suggested Andrew will find the experience of being questioned under oath ‘a little uncomfortable’ – but held out the possibility that a financial deal could be done
The Duke last week issued 41 denials, rejecting all allegations of wrongdoing. In his official response, he stated a further 40 times that he ‘lacks sufficient information to admit or deny’ other claims.
Mr Boies is preparing to fly to Britain later this year to take a legal deposition from the Duke, which he expects to last ‘a day, or probably two’.
‘I’m going to try to get him to understand that this is not going to be combative,’ he told The Daily Telegraph. ‘Obviously, I’m going to ask him a lot of questions.
‘And although some of the questions may be uncomfortable, I’m not going to be aggressive or in any way offensive to him. I’m going to be respectful.’
Mr Boies is known as the ‘greatest deposition taker’ in America and has secured or won for clients nine settlements of more than a billion dollars. He represented Presidential candidate Al Gore after the disputed 2000 election and helped change the law in California to allow gay people to marry.
Andrew’s deposition must be taken before a July 14 deadline set by the judge. Should the case go to court, Mr Boies said he ‘doesn’t think we would need’ Andrew’s ex-wife Sarah, the Duchess of York, or his daughters, Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie, to testify.
Mr Boies is preparing to fly to Britain later this year to take a legal deposition from the Duke, which he expects to last ‘a day, or probably two’, though he says he probably will not need to speak to Prince Andrew’s wider family
The Duke says he has no recollection of ever meeting Ms Roberts, who now uses her married name Giuffre, and last week said he ‘lacks sufficient information to admit or deny’ whether a famous photograph of him with his arm around her waist in March 2001 ‘exists’
He added that while conversations Andrew had had with the Queen ‘could be used, it’s hard to get at those, because he’s probably not going to admit to them, and we’re not going to depose her’.
The Duke says he has no recollection of ever meeting Ms Roberts, who now uses her married name Giuffre, and last week said he ‘lacks sufficient information to admit or deny’ whether a famous photograph of him with his arm around her waist in March 2001 ‘exists’.
Mr Boies claimed he had tried to avoid litigation and remains perplexed at the Duke’s legal strategy. ‘He could have said, “I didn’t know she was underage.” He could have said, “This was an entirely consensual affair.” There are a number of things he could have said that would have been hard to attack. But this is incomprehensible.’
Legal experts have widely predicted that Andrew will be forced to settle the case out of court with a financial payment.
While Mr Boies said his client will not want to settle if Andrew continued to deny knowing her and suggesting the 2001 photograph was fake, he did accept that she will consider a financial offer if it was large enough to be ‘a vindication’.
He said: ‘We would be unlikely to settle in a situation in which somebody just handed over a cheque. So if Prince Andrew maintains “I’ve never heard of this person”, “I don’t know who she is”, “The photographs are fake”, then I don’t think we would settle on that basis.
‘That said, if you had a settlement that was large enough to be, in effect, a vindication, then it’s something we would obviously look at.’
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-10455593/Prince-Andrew-quizzed-London.html
