If his dismissal plea is rejected, a civil trial could take place next year.

A US judge has set a date for the hearing of Britain's Prince Andrew in which his lawyers will plead for his sexual assault case brought by a woman to be dismissed. The hearing will take place on 4 January 2022, RTÉ reports. The judge in the case, Judge Lewis Kaplan said: "The court will hear argument on defendant's motion to dismiss the complaint on 4 January 2022 at 10am." If Prince Andrew's dismissal plea is rejected, Judge Kaplan has said that a civil trial will take place between September and December next year. The British Prince has been accused of sexual assault by US woman Virginia Giuffre in a Manhattan federal court. The alleged abuse took place over 20 years ago when she was 17. Giuffre claims that convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein trafficked her to a number of the financier's associates, which include Prince Andrew. She maintains that the Prince assaulted her at Epstein's properties in New York and in the US Virgin Islands. Additionally, Ms Guiffre alleges that Prince Andrew abused her at the home of Epstein's close associate Ghislaine Maxwell. For his part, Prince Andrew has denied the accusation and has called for it be dismissed, claiming that it is "without merit".