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One of China’s biggest and most divisive #MeToo cases, which had been set to play out with extraordinary transparency because of its US location and was closely watched by millions inside China, has been settled out of court.
Liu Qiangdong, a 49-year-old online retail billionaire who also goes by Richard Liu and is known as China’s Jeff Bezos, had been accused of sexually assaulting a then 21-year-old Chinese graduate when she was studying at the University of Minnesota and he was visiting on a business trip. Liu has always denied the assault accusations, saying it was consensual.
In 2019, Liu Jingyao – who is not related but shares a common name – launched civil proceedings against Liu, after prosecutors declined to pursue a criminal case. The case has been followed by Chinese people. But on the eve of the Minneapolis trial, lawyers for both parties announced they had reached a settlement. A settlement amount was not disclosed.
“The incident between Ms Liu Jingyao and Mr Liu Richard in Minnesota in 2018 resulted in a misunderstanding that has consumed substantial public attention and brought profound suffering to the parties and their families,” it said.
The shock announcement brought to a close a case that had captured the attention of Chinese citizens and media, aided by the US court system’s far more open access than the notoriously opaque Chinese court system.
In 2018 Liu Jingyao claimed she had been at a dinner with Liu, the CEO of e-retail giant JD.com, and other executives, and was put under pressure to drink alcohol. She accused Liu of later forcing himself on her in a car when she was too intoxicated to resist, and then following her to her room and raping her.
