MMA fighter Conor McGregor lost his appeal in a civil rape case stemming from an incident in 2018.
McGregor, 37, was found liable in November in a civil rape and sexual assault case and ordered to pay his accuser, Nikita Hand, about $257,000.
On Thursday, July 31, Ireland’s court of appeal rejected McGregor’s attempt to overturn the decision, according to BBC.
McGregor’s lawyers’ argument for the appeal revolved around mishandling the jury, arguing that the wording of a question given to jurors on the “issue paper” contributed to the final decision, and that McGregor’s statements during his police interviews should not have been exhibited to the jury, per the BBC’s report.
McGregor said he’d be appealing the decision in a now-deleted post on X. “The judge’s instruction and the modest award given was for assault, not for aggravated or exemplary damages,” he wrote “I am disappointed that the jury did not hear all the evidence that the DPP reviewed. I am with my family now, focused on my future. Thank you to all my support worldwide.”
Hand accused McGregor in 2021 of “brutally” raping and battering her while she was intoxicated after she invited him to join her and a friend at a December 2018 company holiday party in Dublin. Her lawyers claimed she was left with bruises and post-traumatic stress disorder after the assault.
Hand also accused a friend of McGregor’s, James Lawrence, of assaulting her on the night in question, Jurors found Lawrence did not assault her, according to The Guardian.
McGregor left the trial without speaking to the media.
Hand, however, addressed reporters outside the courthouse after the verdict in November.
“To all the victims of sexual assault, I hope my story is a reminder that no matter how afraid you might be, speak up, you have a voice and keep on fighting for justice,” she said before crediting her daughter for giving her “so much strength and courage over the last six years throughout this nightmare.”
“I want to show [her] and every other girl and boy that you can stand up for yourself if something happens to you, no matter who the person is, and justice will be served,” Hand added.
