Nikita Hand awarded over €248,000 in civil rape claim against Conor McGregor

25 Nov 2024 Reading time: 2 minutes

Nikita Hand has been awarded over €248,000 in damages after a jury in a civil case found that she was raped by MMA fighter Conor McGregor.

The High Court jury found on Friday that Mr McGregor raped Ms Hand in the Beacon Hotel in Dublin on 9 December 2018.

The jury also found that Mr McGregor’s friend James Lawrence did not rape Ms Hand.

Ms Hand was represented by Coleman Legal and counsel John Gordon SC, Ray Boland SC and Siún Leonowicz BL.

She was awarded a total of €248,603 in general damages and special damages.

Mr McGregor continues to deny raping Ms Hand and has indicated that he will bring an appeal.

Dublin Rape Crisis Centre said in a statement that the case had a “profound effect”, with an increase of nearly 20 per cent in calls to its national rape crisis helpline over the first 10 days of the trial.

Chief executive Rachel Morrogh said the case and public commentary surrounding it had also “thrown up questions about how some of Irish society views victims of sexual violence”.

“It will take some time to analyse all the issues that have arisen for survivors as a result of this case but when we have, Dublin Rape Crisis Centre intends to bring forward a range of victim-centred recommendations,” she said.

“For now though, it is Nikita Hand’s day. All of us at Dublin Rape Crisis Centre wish her and her family the very best as they move on from this together.”