Britain's Prince Andrew on Friday asked a U.S. judge to dismiss Virginia Giuffre's civil lawsuit accusing him of sexually abusing her when she was 17, more than two decades ago.
In a filing with the U.S. District Court in Manhattan, the Duke of York said the case should be dismissed because Giuffre failed to state a claim warranting relief.
He said that if dismissal were not granted, Giuffre should provide a "more definitive statement" of her allegations.
Lawyers for Giuffre did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Giuffre, 38, sued the prince in August, accusing him of forcing her to have sex when she was underage at the London home of Ghislaine Maxwell, a longtime associate of the late financier and sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
The lawsuit also claimed that Andrew abused Giuffre at Epstein's mansion in Manhattan, and on one of Epstein's private islands in the U.S. Virgin Islands.
Andrew, 61, a former friend of Epstein, has not been charged with crimes, and has "categorically" denied Giuffre's claims against him.
(Reporting by Jonathan Stempel in New York; Editing by Leslie Adler and Daniel Wallis)
