Jeffrey Epstein’s alleged “sex slave” Virginia Roberts Giuffre filed a civil lawsuit against the Queen’s second son Prince Andrew last month, accusing the royal of raping her at the age of 17 when she was just a “frightened, vulnerable child”.

The Duke of York has been served court documents naming him as a defendant in the Virginia Roberts Giuffre rape case but lawyers for the embattled royal are claiming that the procedure was not done properly and are planning to boycott the upcoming court hearing, the Daily Mail reported.

Prince Andrew is said to have received the papers on 27 August, after weeks of avoidance, a legal team for Virginia Roberts Giuffre said in a new court filing.