A U.S. court will hold a pretrial conference Monday in the civil suit filed by a woman who claims Prince Andrew sexually assaulted her.
LONDON — A U.S. court will hold a pretrial conference Monday in the civil suit filed by a woman who claims Prince Andrew sexually assaulted her as the two sides argue over whether the prince was properly served with documents in the case. Attorneys for the woman, Virginia Giuffre, say the documents were handed over to a Metropolitan Police officer on duty at the main gates of Andrew’s home in Windsor Great Park on Aug.27. But Blackfords, a law firm that said they represent Andrew “in certain U.K. matters,’’ have questioned whether the papers were properly served and raised the possibility of challenging the court’s jurisdiction in the case, according to a Sept.6 letter referenced in court documents filed by Giuffre’s attorneys. “We reiterate that our client reserves all his rights, including to contest the jurisdiction of the US courts (including on the basis of potentially defective service),” they wrote. A U.S. judge will ultimately determine whether the papers were properly delivered. Judge Lewis Kaplan of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York will hold the first pretrial conference in the case via teleconference on Monday.
