Prince Andrew could face BAILIFFS coming round to seize assets from £30m Royal Lodge if he loses sex case, says lawyer
PRINCE Andrew faces bailiffs turning up at his home – the £30 million Royal Lodge to seize his assets – if loses his sex case trial, a lawyer has warned.
The 62-year-old Duke of York has announced he wants claims by Virginia Robert Giuffre that he raped her heard by a jury in New York.
Ms Giuffre, 38, says in her lawsuit she was “forced to have sexual intercourse with Prince Andrew against her will” and lists offences including rape in the first degree.
The mum-of-three alleges she was procured by Andrew’s friend Ghislaine Maxwell as teenage “sex slave” for multi-millionaire paedophile Jeffrey Epstein.
Ms Giuffre is suing the royal for so far unspecified damages but they are likely to be in the millions should she win
Already there have been claims he has sold his £17 million ski chalet in the Swiss alps to avoid having it seized should he lose the case.
And while his home, the Royal Lodge, is not owned by him – he could see officers from the court turning up at the gates.
Lawyer Arick Fudali, who has worked closely with victims of Epstein for Lisa Bloom’s firm, said Andrew faces having his assets seized if he loses.
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“There is a method and procedure for seizing assets, even overseas assets, in the event there is an award of damages and the defendant tries to avoid paying,” he told The Sun Online.
“This could include seizing bank accounts, physical property, etc.
“Assuming for the sake of this question that there is an award of damages against Prince Andrew, he would be able to avoid the seizure of assets by posting a bond pending the inevitable appeal.
“Assuming the appeal goes in favour of Ms. Giuffre, Prince Andrew would either have to pay the amount owed, settle the matter for another amount, or risk his assets being seized.”
The royal has vehemently denied the claims made by Ms Giuffre and signalled his determination to fight the case.
Just how much the Duke of York is worth is unclear though a figure of £32 million has been reported.
And how he manages to fund a lavish lifestyle has been the subject of intense speculation.
The royal does receive a £249,000 yearly allowance from Buckingham Palace and £20,000 pension from the Royal Navy.
But he is renowned for his expensive tastes and drives a small fleet of luxury cars that includes a £220,000 Bentley.
The Duke also has a collection of high end watches that is said to include a £150,000 Patek Philippe.
He has been pictured wearing an 18 Carat gold Apple Watch worth £12,000 and a Platinum Rolex Day, which has a reported value of £9700.
MPs have recently called for a probe into the sale of a house for £15m to billionaire oligarch Timur Kulibayev, son-in-law of the former Kazakh dictator Nursultan Nazarbayev.
The price paid for the garish property was £3million over the asking price – raising eyebrows at the time.
It also emerged Andrew was gifted £1.5million by a controversial businessman to pay off a loan he had taken out from a private bank.
He was given the cash by property boss and financier David “Spotty” Rowland, whose clients have included dictators and despots.
The royal currently lives in the Royal Lodge in Windsor Great Park, which he shares with ex-wife Sarah Ferguson and is said to be worth around £30 million on the open market
He doesn’t own the property but in 2003, signed a 75-year lease for a one-off fee of £1million to the Crown Estate, the equivalent of around £250 a week.
Andrew has spent £7.5million refurbishing the property, including the addition of an indoor swimming pool.
How the US court’s decision could be enforced in the UK
If the Duke of York loses the case and once the appeal process is finished and he doesn’t pay then Virginia Giuffre’s lawyers can begin the process of recovering the debt.
Although there is no bilateral agreement between the United States and the UK, nonetheless there are means by which money can be recovered as the result of an American court decision.
New court proceedings must begin in the UK and these can go ahead including if the debtor has submitted to the jurisdiction of the US court, which the Prince clearly has.
The judgment must also be for an ascertainable and definite sum of money.
An English court will refuse to recognise or enforce a judgment obtained by fraud or one that that is contrary to the European Convention on Human Rights because it’s too punitive.
But experts believe it is unlikely a US court would make such a decision.
The process is not quick and straightforward but the means exist for Ms. Giuffre’s lawyers to pursue Andrew through the English courts should he lose the case and not settle any damages.
The Duke retreated there after stepping down from Royal duties in the wake of criticism of his “car crash” interview with the BBC’s Emily Maitliss.
But he reportedly faces after being kicked out in the wake of having his royal patronages and military titles stripped by the Queen.
So far exactly how much Andrew could have to pay in damages has yet to be specified but the figure of £14 million has been reported.
Fudali said the final sum will depend on the jury Andrew wants to hear the case and they will decide it on the basis of Ms. Giuffre’s evidence.
“Ultimately, the amount of damages would be entirely up to the jury to decide after hearing the evidence,” he said.
“There is no exact science or formula for determining damages.
“The jury will make a damages decision based upon the evidence of emotional distress suffered by the plaintiff, and the severity and nature of the acts proven at trial.”
