Prince Andrew ‘demands trial by jury’ as he responds to sex assault lawsuit

Prince Andrew has denied all allegations and is demanding a “trial by jury” as he fights back against Virginia Giuffre’s sex assault lawsuit.

Prince Andrew has “demanded” a trial by jury in response to Virginia Giuffre’s civil sex assault suit.

Court documents from New York show the royal denies all of the allegations against him and “hereby demands a trial by jury on all causes of action asserted in the complaint”.

Ms Giuffre, 38, has accused the Duke of forcing her to sleep with him more than 20 years ago at the home of convicted sex trafficker Ghislaine Maxwell.

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Prince Andrew with a young Ms Giuffre and Ghislaine Maxwell at a home in London. Picture: Handout/US District Court – Southern District of New York

In an 11-page document, lawyers for Andrew set out the Duke’s response to Ms Giuffre’s allegations.

It says he denies the allegation that he sexually abused Ms Giuffre when she was under 18 years of age.

Prince Andrew has denied the allegations. Picture: Steve Parsons/AFP

The document, submitted to the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York, also sets out a series of defences “without assuming the burden of proof, and expressly denying any and all wrongdoing”.

This includes arguments that the claim should be dismissed because Ms Giuffre is a permanent resident of Australia and that by entering into the 2009 agreement with Jeffrey Epstein she “waived the claims now asserted in the complaint”.

The document concludes: “Prince Andrew hereby demands a trial by jury on all causes of action asserted in the Complaint.”

Andrew was previously thought to be seeking an out-of-court settlement with Roberts after Judge Lewis Kaplan denied his motion to dismiss the civil complaint.

The figure was estimated to be up to £10 million ($A18.9 million) – the amount he will get from selling his chalet in Verbier, Switzerland.

This article originally appeared in The Sun and was reproduced with permission