A legal effort by Conor McGregor to reverse the decision of a civil rape and sexual assault trial in Ireland has failed.
McGregor, a former UFC fighter, remains an adjudicated rapist in the eyes of Ireland’s civil High Court after his appeal was denied following a verdict that found him liable for a 2018 sexual assault of Nikita Hand in a Dublin hotel room, according to multiple reports from Dublin.
McGregor’s legal team filed an appeal earlier this year, but eventually withdrew some of the basis for that appeal. Thursday, the appeal was denied on each of the arguments that were presented for it.
Part of the new evidence presented by the McGregor side in the appeal included sworn affidavits from neighbors who said they saw Hand in a physical altercation with her partner hours prior to her encounter with McGregor. That, presumably, was to suggest Hand’s bruising was not from McGregor.
But Hand denied such an event ever took place, and McGregor’s team withdrew the evidence. The judges in the appeal, according to reports, did “not wish to speculate” as to why the evidence was not presented. Additionally, the McGregor defense in the appeal said the issue paper at the conclusion of the trial asked the jury whether McGregor “assaulted” Hand, rather than “sexually assaulted.”
The judge in the appeal said there was little doubt the jury members in the original trial were confused over Hand being “assaulted” or “sexually assaulted.” The trial judge, it was brought up, in jury instructions before their deliberations, told the members that Hand had been “violently raped” by McGregor, according to her own testimony.
McGregor’s team also hoped there might be some substance to his repeated “no comment” to initial police questioning, and that the jury members did not appropriately know that was not an admission of liability.
McGregor remains responsible for the initial €250,000 verdict. In addition, he must pay Hand’s legal costs.
McGregor’s co-defendant, James Lawrence, also appealed. He was found not guilty of sexually assaulting Hand the same night as the McGregor incident. But Lawrence took exception with the court’s decision to not award him any costs. Lawrence’s legal team claimed this was done on the basis of an unproven assumption Lawrence and McGregor concocted a story to get themselves both off the hook.
But at the end of the day, the appeals court didn’t buy that appeal, and in fact said the McGregor-Lawrence relationship in regards to the Hand case is “shrouded in mystery” given it appears McGregor was paying Lawrence’s legal fees – and then Lawrence tried to appeal to get his legal fees covered by Hand.
McGregor (22-6 MMA, 10-4 UFC) has not fought since he broke his leg in a second straight knockout loss to Dustin Poirier more than four years ago. He was supposed to return against Michael Chandler at UFC 303 in June 2024, but pulled out after he broke his baby toe.
