Conor McGregor has lost his appeal against a civil jury’s decision that found him liable for assault in a rape case brought by Dublin woman Nikita Hand. On Thursday, the Court of Appeal in Dublin dismissed all five grounds of appeal, upholding the original verdict from last November.
Ms Hand, 35, sued McGregor over an incident in December 2018, alleging he “brutally raped and battered” her in a south Dublin hotel penthouse. McGregor denied the allegation, claiming the encounter was consensual. However, the jury found him civilly liable for assault and awarded Hand €248,603.60 in damages. He was also ordered to pay around €1.3 million in legal costs.
One part of the appeal involved a sworn statement from Samantha O’Reilly, a former neighbour of Hand, who claimed to have witnessed a fight between Hand and her then-partner around the same time. McGregor’s legal team later withdrew that section of the appeal.
The rest of the case hinged on procedural issues, including whether McGregor’s refusal to answer Garda questions during the investigation should have been presented to the jury. A panel of three judges — Ms Justice Isobel Kennedy, Mr Justice Brian O’Moore, and Mr Justice Patrick MacGrath — ruled there was no merit in any of the arguments.
Delivering the decision, Mr Justice O’Moore said, “I therefore dismiss the appeal in its entirety.”
A separate appeal by co-defendant James Lawrence who was cleared by the jury was also dismissed. Lawrence had asked the court to make Ms Hand cover his legal costs since she did not succeed in her claim against him. The court upheld the original ruling that he must pay his own legal fees.
Ms Hand, also known as Nikita Ní Laimhín, attended the hearing and was embraced by supporters after the judgment. McGregor and Lawrence were not present.
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