Maxwell is reportedly willing to give evidence in support of the Duke of York.

Ghislaine Maxwell is prepared to give evidence in the sex abuse lawsuit that was filed on Sunday against Prince Andrew. Virginia Giuffre submitted a lawsuit on August 8 seeking damages against from the royal after claiming that he sexually abused her when she was 17. The 38-year-old also alleges that Prince Andrew knew her age and committed the acts while "knowing that she was a sex-trafficking victim" of Jeffrey Epstein. Prince Andrew has always vehemently denied the allegations, and it seems that Maxwell is willing to give evidence to support him in the case. If Maxwell were to give evidence, it could be key in the allegations as Giuffre claims that one of the three times she was abused by the Duke of York was at Maxwell's home in London. Giuffre also claims she was groomed by Maxwell to be abused by Andrew. However, Maxwell is currently awaiting trial for sex trafficking charges herself and will therefore only be able to give credible evidence if she is cleared of these charges. The Telegraph reports that friends of Maxwell have said she is willing to testify on Prince Andrew's behalf if the case eventually reaches court, with one saying it is "highly likely she will offer to assist him." She would apparently support Andrew's insistence that he never engaged in any sexual activity or relationship with Virginia Giuffre, then-known as Virginia Roberts. The friend told the Telegraph: "Ghislaine will be prepared to give evidence on the Duke’s behalf. "By the time the case against the Duke gets to court, Ghislaine will either be convicted and serving up to 85 years in jail [or if] cleared of course she would help Prince Andrew. They have been friends for a very long time. "It is highly likely Ghislaine will offer to assist him." Meanwhile, Giuffre's lawyer has said that it would be "very ill-advised" for Prince Andrew to ignore the legal action. Speaking to BBC Newsnight, David Boies said: "If he does [ignore judicial process] it will be a default judgement against him that will be, in effect, enforced not only in the United States, but in virtually every civilised country in the world. "So you ignore the law and you ignore the court at your peril." He added that the lawsuit is intended by Giuffre to send a message to the rich and powerful men that the alleged behaviour "is not acceptable and that you cannot hide behind wealth and power and palace walls."