
Conor McGregor appeals Nikita Hand civil rape case verdict
Last November, Nikita Hand, also known as Nikita Ni Laimhin, won her claim against McGregor after accusing the professional fighter of raping her in a Dublin hotel in December 2018.
Ms Hand, 35, was awarded damages and costs after a three-week trial in which the jury found him civilly liable for assault.
McGregor faced an accusation that he 'brutally raped and battered' Ms Hand at a hotel in south Dublin in December 2018.
The sportsman told the court last November he had consensual sex with Ms Hand in a penthouse at the Beacon Hotel in south Dublin.
The court heard that Ms Hand was taken in an ambulance to the Rotunda Hospital the following day where she was assessed in the sexual assault treatment unit (SATU).
A paramedic who examined Ms Hand the day after the assault had told the court she had not seen 'someone so bruised' in a long time.
Ms Hand broke down several times as she gave evidence for almost three days.
The jury had been told Ms Hand had to leave her job as a hairdresser and has not been able to work since because of her mental health, that her relationship with her partner ended months after the incident, she had to move out of her home in Drimnagh, and her mortgage is now in arrears.
After eight days of evidence and three days listening to closing speeches and the judge's charge, the jury of eight women and four men spent six hours and 10 minutes deliberating before returning their verdict.
The total amount of damages awarded to Ms Hand by the jury was €248,603.60.
Speaking outside court after the verdict, Ms Hand said she hoped her case would remind victims of assault to keep 'pushing forward for justice'.
Conor McGregor's appeal over the civil rape guilty veridct is due to start at approximately 10.30am.
Conor McGregor will appeal the decision to award a woman almost €250,000 after the UFC star was found liable of assaulting her in a hotel.
Nikita Hand, who accused the sportsman of raping her in a Dublin hotel in December 2018, won her claim against him for damages in a High Court civil case. Following eight days of evidence and three days listening to closing speeches and the judge's charge, the jury of eight women and four men spent six hours and 10 minutes deliberating before returning with its verdict.
Read the full story here.
Dee Devlin has shared a number of loved up posts with Conor McGregor on social media as the couple enjoy a family holiday in the Mediterranean.
The UFC star and his fiancée are holidaying on their luxury yacht off the coast of Majorca with their four children. In a series of posts on her Instagram story, Devlin can be seen sunbathing alongside McGregor on a beach, while others show them doing a number of stretches, swimming and enjoying a BBQ on the yacht.
She also shared old footage of the couple hugging and kissing, including inside the octagon after some of the former two-weight UFC champion's biggest victories.
Nikita Hand is set to take the witness stand on Tuesday as Conor McGregor launches his appeal of a jury's finding that he assaulted her.
Ms Hand is understood to be attending a two-day appeal hearing before the High Court this week, and will refute "new evidence" put forward by the UFC fighter.
Former neighbours of Ms Hand, Samantha O'Reilly and Steven Cummins, will give evidence and be cross-examined by her lawyers at the hearing on Tuesday morning.

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Extra.ie
4 hours ago
- Extra.ie
Court of Appeal shouldn't have been told about McGregor's 100 'no comment' replies
A jury should never have heard that MMA fighter Conor McGregor answered 'no comment' more than 100 times when questioned by gardaí over his alleged rape of Nikita Hand, the Court of Appeal has been told. In his appeal against a High Court verdict won by Ms Hand last November, McGregor's legal team argued their client had been exercising his right to silence. Barrister Remy Farrell said High Court judge Alexander Owens had recognised this right and McGregor's right to avoid self-incrimination. He said the 'no comments' were wrongly brought into the civil trial last November by Ms Hand's legal team and Judge Owens. Nikita Hand arriving at the Court of Appeal in Dublin. Pic: Collins Courts Mr Farrell said his side had flagged its concerns about the 'no comments' being 'manifestly prejudicial' during the High Court hearing, but Ms Hand's side simply decided to 'take a punt' and 'let it all hang out'. He said the result was that, although they had been directed not to do so, the jury were left with evidence that could allow them to draw an inference about why McGregor was refusing to answer the Garda questions. McGregor is attempting to overturn the verdict of the jury, which found he had assaulted Ms Hand, 36, and ordered he pay her close to €250,000 in damages. A judge then ruled he must pay her legal costs, estimated to be around €1.3million. Conor McGregor. Pic: Leah Farrell/ He wants a new hearing of the High Court case. Ms Hand was at the packed Court of Appeal yesterday to hear legal arguments, accompanied by her partner Gary Foy, her mother Deborah, a cousin and friends. Also present was gender-based violence activist Natasha O'Brien. McGregor was not in court, although his black Rolls-Royce, with tinted windows, was seen driving past the Four Courts yesterday. A group of people, including TD Ruth Coppinger, gathered outside the court holding a banner reading, 'We stand with Nikita Hand'. Mr Farrell said the questioning of McGregor by gardaí at Dundrum station took place in January 2019, following Ms Hand's allegation that she'd been raped in the penthouse of the Beacon Hotel the previous month. Ruth Coppinger and Natasha O'Brien. Pic: Niall Carson/PA Wire He said McGregor had told the High Court he had given gardaí a pre-prepared statement, drawn up with the help of his solicitors. During his direct evidence, McGregor told the trial that being accused of rape was 'the most scary thing I had ever gone through'. He said he 'wanted to get everything correct', and so immediately contacted a solicitor to get the best advice, and jotted down notes. He said he wanted to 'show everything that happened'. Mr Farrell said this was used as a 'hook' by Ms Hand's barrister, John Gordon, to press McGregor about what he had – and had not – told gardaí. Conor McGregor's Rolls Royce in Dublin. Pic: Tom Honan He said McGregor's comments were wrongly paraphrased by Mr Gordon to suggest he had wanted to fully cooperate with gardaí, when in fact he wanted to show everything to his solicitors. He said Mr Gordon obtained a ruling from Judge Owens, allowing him to challenge McGregor about the truth of his comments, with regard to his subsequent policy of saying 'no comment' to Garda questioning. After outlining the 100-plus times McGregor said 'no comment', Mr Gordon never asked McGregor about whether he had told the jury he intended to cooperate with gardaí, Mr Farrell complained. He said the judge later 'scrambled' to explain to the jury why they had heard the evidence. Conor McGregor. Pic: Collins Courts Mr Farrell said McGregor explained to the court that he answered 'no comment' in accordance with his legal advice, as he was 'petrified'. Mr Farrell said McGregor was also challenging the use of the word 'assault' as opposed to 'sexual assault' on the issue paper given to the jury. He said this could have left a potential for 'confusion' in the minds of some jurors as to what they were being asked to describe. Judge Isobel Kennedy noted that the High Court judge had been clear that it was 'assault by rape'. Responding, Ms Hand's barrister, Ray Boland, said it was 'an insult to the intelligence of the jury to say they did not know what the case was about'. He said the judge's charge and the evidence made it clear McGregor was accused of sexual assault or assault by rape, 'and the jury understood that'. He said the issue paper had been discussed by all sides and McGregor's legal team had agreed to its contents. He added that there was 'no ambiguity whatsoever' and no confusion. Mr Boland said that as well as the sexual assault, there was also a significant physical assault on Ms Hand, including strangulation on three occasions. He said that if the 'no comment' evidence was such a serious issue, his lawyers should have applied to have the jury discharged at the time – but they did not. He said McGregor had told the court he wanted 'every shred' of evidence to be heard by the gardaí, and Ms Hand's legal team were entitled to challenge him about that claim. Further grounds of appeal raised by McGregor, including issues concerning expert witnesses and further points concerning the judge's charge to the jury, will be decided by the court on the basis of written submissions. The Court of Appeal will today hear a challenge by McGregor's friend, James Lawrence, 35, of Rafter's Road, Drimnagh, against an order that Ms Hand does not have to pay his legal fees. The jury dismissed a claim by Ms Hand that she had also been raped by Mr Lawrence on the same day and at the same hotel. Ms Hand told the High Court the first she knew of Mr Lawrence having sex with her was when he told gardaí, following her allegation of rape against McGregor. The High Court has heard that Mr Lawrence's lawyers were paid for by McGregor.


RTÉ News
5 hours ago
- RTÉ News
Former swimming coach George Gibney arrested in US
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Sunday World
10 hours ago
- Sunday World
Traveller family who live on boxer Billy Joe Saunders' land ordered to leave
High Court judge Alison Morgan has given the family six months from now to remove the static home that has been there since 2019 A Traveller family who have been living on a site owned by boxing champion Billy Joe Saunders for several years have been given six months to leave. Patrick Flynn and Selina Diana O'Leary, who live with two children aged 10 and 14, are being evicted after a ruling by a judge at London's High Court following a long-running legal battle. They have been ordered off the caravan site in Hertfordshire that lies within a Green Belt and the Brickendon Conservation Area. The site had been officially owned by ex-middleweight boxing champion Billy Joe Saunders. His former firm BJS Sports has been highlighted in the new injunction, according to MailOnline, although he was found to no longer be responsible for the site. High Court judge Alison Morgan has given the family six months from now to remove the static home that has been there since 2019, having ruled that East Hertfordshire District Council can go ahead with evicting the site's occupiers. The judge found that it was 'necessary to uphold the integrity of the planning system as the conventional enforcement measures have proven ineffective in resolving what is a clear breach of planning control'. Boxing champion Billy Joe Saunders Today's News in 90 Seconds - July 1st The legal team representing Mr Flynn and Ms O'Leary had argued in their defence that the family should be given more time to stay, as the children attend local schools. However, they have been told not only to leave the site but also to pay legal costs of £16,609. A post on the website of the London-based law firm FTB Chambers, which led the case against the occupants, reads: 'The High Court has granted an injunction which requires the cessation of an unauthorised residential use following a long-standing period of non-compliance with an enforcement notice.' Described in court documents as a wagon builder and painter, Mr Flynn (64) has been living in the three-bed chalet home with his wife and children since at least 2018. Ms O'Leary is described as a vocalist and singer who has performed internationally according to court documents. The local authority's legal action was launched against not only that couple but also BJS Sports and Billy Joe Saunders but the judge said Saunders (35) no longer owned the land in question. She added that any proceedings against him should be discontinued. Billy Joe Saunders was officially recorded on Companies House records as no longer being 'a person with significant control' with BJS Sports in February 2023. Mr Flynn said he had been to court and 'said what I could to make them understand this is a family home'. 'I've asked for six months to find a new place after Christmas as I've got enough stress already and the children don't deserve it,' he told MailOnline. 'I wouldn't have minded if the council gave me a place to go on a back road, whether it was an old house run down that I'd have to do up myself - I wouldn't mind. 'But we've had no help, no support, nothing. Nobody looks after each other anymore. There's no community.' An East Herts District Council spokesperson said moving anyone from their home is not a decision that's taken lightly. 'This particular case has been ongoing since 2019, during which time we have repeatedly offered help to the family to find somewhere else to live,' the spokesperson said, according to MailOnline. 'We regret that it has taken a High Court injunction to resolve this, but we welcome the judge's recognition that we have tried for a long time to deal with the situation fairly and proportionately for everyone involved. 'The injunction requires the unauthorised residential use of the land to cease by 4 December 2025. We have again offered our support to the family should they wish to take that up.'