Prince Andrew urged to challenge settlement with Virginia Roberts Giuffre after 'mistake'
By Natalie Oliveri|
A US man who was accused of sexual assault by Virginia Roberts Giuffre has urged Prince Andrew to challenge his settlement with her.
Giuffre dropped the claim against American lawyer Alan Dershowitz in November, saying that she "may have made a mistake" in identifying him.
In an interview with British media, Dershowitz believes the Duke of York "should pursue every legal remedy?" in trying to get the financial deal reversed.
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It was a "mistake" for Andrew, 62, ?to have settled the case out of court instead of taking it to trial, Dershowitz says.
"I have never understood why he accepted the settlement," Dershowitz told The Telegraph UK.
"There were many, many good defences he could have raised. I've thought right from the beginning, as soon as the deal was done, it was a mistake to do it.
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"He should pursue every legal remedy and the media should investigate thoroughly all of the allegations because this is just the tip of the iceberg."
"Everybody should be interested in the truth coming out."
Last week it emerged Prince Andrew was ?in consultation with his legal team about how to force a retraction, or even an apology, from Giuffre, which could pave the way for a return to royal duties.
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Andrew believes ?the "extraordinary" development has now raised serious questions over Giuffre's credibility.
Giuffre accused the Duke of York of raping and abusing her three times in 2001, when she was 17 and sued him in August 2020.
Prince Andrew has always vehemently denied the accusations.
In February last year, he reached a $20 million settlement with Giuffre bringing an end to the long-running civil case.
It included a ?2 million contribution to Giuffre's sex trafficking charity thought to have been paid by the late Queen.
The out-of-court deal also included a 12-month gagging clause that will expire next month, raising the prospect that Giuffre might be free to repeat her allegations.?
Giuffre has reportedly signed a deal with a publisher and her book is expected to detail at length her abuse at the hands of Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell.
But she is unlikely to write about her alleged experiences with the Duke of York.
As part of the deal, Giuffre agreed not to publicly repeat her allegations against Prince Andrew again.
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