Prince Andrew risks the wrath of a New York judge if his lawyers decline to take part in a pre-trial hearing on Monday in his sexual assault civil case.
The Duke of York has appointed a US-based lawyer, but it is understood that no one from his legal team will participate in the telephone conference. He is being sued by Virginia Roberts Giuffre, 38, who claims she was sexually assaulted by the Duke, an allegation he vehemently denies.
According to a legal document, Judge Lewis Kaplan has ordered that both parties in the case “are directed to confer regarding an agreed scheduling order”. The judge is seeking to set a timetable for the management of the case.
If lawyers for Prince Andrew decline to dial in to the hearing, that could be seen as being in defiance of the judge’s order issued on August 12, but only made public over the weekend.
Ms Giuffre, who claims she was forced to have sex with the Duke three times when she was aged 17 in New York, London and the US Virgin islands, is suing him under New York’s Child Victims Act.
