Former UFC two-division champion Conor McGregor has been found liable for a 2018 sexual assault in a civil lawsuit filed in Ireland.
A jury on Friday in Dublin found that McGregor sexually assaulted Nikita Hand in December 2018. Hand filed a civil suit in early 2021 alleging that while intoxicated, McGregor and another man, James Lawrence, had sex with her without her consent. Full criminal charges were not pursued.
The jury, according to Irish Mirror journalist Paul Healy, who has been in the courtroom throughout the trial, returned a verdict that included damages amounting to around €250,000 (nearly the same in U.S. dollars). The jury returned its verdict in a little more than six hours.
The jury said Lawrence did not assault Hand. During the trial, Hand’s attorney said McGregor and Lawrence made a combined effort to have Lawrence take the fall, rather than McGregor.
Hand was seeking damages – general, special, aggravated, and punitive – for the incident and her inability to work due to mental health reasons, according to court documents. In the statement of the claim reported by The New York Times in 2021, Hand sought damages of $1.79 million-$2.13 million.
McGregor and his legal team were in the courtroom for the verdict, as was McGregor’s wife, Dee Devlin, with whom he shares four children, the first of whom was born in late 2017. McGregor admitted under oath during the trial that he had sex with Hand during the incident in question in late 2018 but said it was consensual.
McGregor has not fought since a July 2021 TKO loss to Dustin Poirier. It’s been more than eight years since he most recently held a UFC title, which was stripped from him for failure to defend. Although he was tapped to coach on “The Ultimate Fighter” opposite Michael Chandler and fight afterward, that fight has not come to fruition.
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Hand spoke to reporters from a pre-written statement outside the courthouse moments after the verdict was handed down.
“I’m overwhelmed. I’m touched by the support I’ve received from everybody,” Hand said. ”… (My daughter) has given me the strength and courage over the last six years throughout this nightmare to keep on pushing for justice. I want to show (her) and every other girl and boy that if something happens to you, you can stand up for yourself – no matter who the person is, and justice will be served.”
(This story and headline have been updated for clarity.)