It is unclear whether Prince Andrew, the Duke of York, was at the Royal Lodge, his residence, at the time and whether his lawyers would say this was a proper service.
A representative of Prince Andrew’s legal team did not immediately respond to calls for comment. The Palace refused to comment on whether Prince Andrew had been served and had previously declined to comment on the dispute.
CNN has contacted Virginia Giuffre’s lawyers, but has yet to hear.
In an affidavit, the trial server said he arrived at The Royal Lodge on the morning of Aug. 26 and spoke with the security chief, who said the security team had been instructed not to allow no one who tried to present legal documents on the grounds and “not to accept notification of any court proceedings,” according to the affidavit.
The trial server said he was told that anything left there would not be sent to the defendant, according to the affidavit. The trial server said it called Prince Andrew’s lawyer and left a message, according to the affidavit.
The next day, the trial server returned to The Royal Lodge and was told that he could safely leave the legal documents at the front doors and that the documents would be forwarded to the defendant’s legal team, according to the statement. jury.
Notifying the papers in this way “is consistent with the provisions for the service of an individual defendant … as required by the Supreme Court of the Judiciary of England and Wales,” according to the court document obtained by CNN.
In this case, a precautionary hearing is set for Monday, Sept. 13 in New York. It is unclear how the prince’s lawyers will respond.
CNN’s Max Foster reported from Berkshire, England, and Brian Vitagliano, from New York.