NEW YORK, Feb 16, 2022 (BSS/AFP) - Prince Andrew and his longtime accuser
Virginia Giuffre have settled a sexual assault lawsuit for an undisclosed
sum, a US court filing showed Tuesday, sparing the disgraced British royal
the public humiliation of a trial.

   In a letter sent to a New York judge on behalf of both parties, Giuffre's
lawyer David Boies wrote that they "have reached an out of court settlement,"
without revealing the financial terms.

   As part of the agreement, the British royal will make a "substantial
donation" to a charity established by Giuffre that supports sex trafficking
victims, Boies said.

   Giuffre has said she had sex with Andrew when she was 17 and a minor under
US law after meeting him through the late US financier Jeffrey Epstein, who
committed suicide in prison while awaiting trial for sex crimes.

   The prince has not been criminally charged and has denied the allegations.

   The settlement means the civil case will not go to a jury trial. It also
means Andrew, 61, will no longer be questioned under oath by Giuffre's
lawyers, who had been due to travel to London next month.

   Boies said in the document filed in a Manhattan court that the respective
parties would file a stipulation dismissing the case within 30 days upon
"receipt of the settlement."

   The letter makes no mention of Giuffre's accusations. Neither does it
admit any guilt on behalf of Andrew or refer to the repeated denials he has
made.

   It said that Andrew "regrets his association with Epstein, and commends
the bravery of Ms. Giuffre and other survivors in standing up for themselves
and others."

   "Prince Andrew has never intended to malign Ms. Giuffre's character, and
he accepts that she has suffered both as an established victim of abuse and
as a result of unfair public attacks.

   "He pledges to demonstrate his regret for his association with Epstein by
supporting the fight against the evils of sex trafficking, and by supporting
its victims," the letter added.

   The controversy has embarrassed the British monarchy and overshadowed
Queen Elizabeth II's Platinum Jubilee year in which she marks 70 years on the
throne.

   Last month, Andrew was stripped of his honorary military titles and
charitable roles after US judge Lewis Kaplan denied his plea to dismiss
Giuffre's case.

   Former prosecutor-turned law professor Bennett Gershman said the
settlement was "very good news" for Andrew because it gets him out of
testifying while not having to acknowledge any improper conduct towards
Giuffre.

   "His relief must be palpable," Gershman told AFP.

   Lawyer Lisa Bloom, who represents eight of Epstein's victims, hailed the
settlement as a "victory" for Giuffre, however.

   "She has accomplished what no one else could: getting Prince Andrew to
stop his nonsense and side with sexual abuse victims," Bloom tweeted.

   - Private island -

   Giuffre, now 38, alleged that Andrew sexually assaulted her at the London
home of socialite and Epstein friend Ghislaine Maxwell after a night out
dancing in March 2001.

   She sued the prince last year for unspecified damages under New York's
Child Victims' Act, alleging that she was trafficked to him by Epstein and
Maxwell.

   In December, Maxwell was convicted of recruiting and grooming young girls
to be sexually abused by Epstein, exposing a murky world of sex trafficking
among the rich and powerful.

   As well as the London allegations, Giuffre also said Andrew assaulted her
at Epstein's home in New York, and on Epstein's private island in the US
Virgin Islands.

   Epstein, 66, was a high-profile financier who befriended countless
celebrities.

   His death in a Manhattan jail in August 2019 was ruled a suicide by New
York's chief medical examiner but sparked conspiracy theories that he had
been killed to protect wealthy associates.

   Andrew, Queen Elizabeth II's second son, withdrew from public life as a
royal in 2019 after a widely ridiculed BBC interview where he defended his
relationship with Epstein and sought to vindicate himself of Giuffre's
accusation.

   The conciliatory language in Tuesday's statement was in stark contrast to
October, when Andrew's lawyers accused Giuffre of seeking to profit from a
"baseless lawsuit."

   A spokesperson for Andrew said he would not be commenting beyond the court
documents.