Settlement in sex abuse lawsuit against Prince Andrew leaves lingering questionsWith the settlement in the sex abuse lawsuit launched by lawyers for Virginia Giuffre against Prince Andrew, a public airing of the allegations at the heart of the legal action won't happen.

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Case settled out of court, avoiding trial that could cast shadow over Queen's Platinum Jubilee

Janet Davison · CBC News(Shannon Stapleton/Reuters)

Queen Elizabeth's second son, now 62, had repeatedly denied the allegations at the heart of the suit. 

Giuffre, now living in Australia, had accused Andrew of forcing her to have sex with him at the London home of Ghislaine Maxwell, a longtime associate of Epstein. Giuffre also said Andrew abused her at Epstein's mansion in New York City and on Epstein's private island in the Caribbean.

Many observers expect the settlement would have been greeted with relief by the Royal Family, coming as it does at the beginning of the Platinum Jubilee to mark Queen Elizabeth's 70 years as monarch. The prospect of a messy, lurid trial threatened to cast a significant shadow over the Jubilee.

Observers also widely argue that there is little — or no— way back in the court of public opinion for Prince Andrew, whose reputation sank like a stone, particularly after the disastrous November 2019 interview he did with the BBC regarding his friendship with Epstein.

With the settlement, which includes an undisclosed sum of money for Giuffre, a public airing of the allegations at the heart of the suit won't happen.  

And that's typical in such situations.

WATCH | Prince Andrew settles sexual abuse case with Virginia Giuffre:

Prince Andrew reaches settlement with sex-abuse accuser Virginia Giuffre

6 days agoDuration 1:26A tentative settlement has been reached in a lawsuit accusing Prince Andrew of sexually abusing American Virginia Giuffre when she was 17. Under the agreement, the prince will make a substantial donation to Giuffre's charity and says he never intended to malign her character, her lawyer said.NewsReport Typo or Error|Corrections and Clarifications

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