High Court orders Conor McGregor not to publish CCTV footage shown in Nikita Hand civil trial

The judge also directed that €100,000 of damages awarded to Nikita Hand be paid by Conor McGregor, along with €200,000 of the legal costs

Mr Justice Owens also directed that €100,000 of the damages awarded to Ms Hand by the jury in this civil case be paid by Mr McGregor, along with €200,000 of the legal costs. File photo

Conor McGregor must not disseminate any CCTV footage shown in the civil trial taken against him by Nikita Hand, and return any copies of the footage in his possession while deleting any copies he has on his personal devices, the High Court has ruled.

Mr Justice Alexander Owens made the ruling as he was satisfied there was a “real and demonstrable” risk that Mr McGregor may provide the footage to an Italian business associate who had posted about the footage on social media.

“In my view it is necessary to nip all of this in the bud,” he said. “It is necessary to act immediately to prevent harm.” 

 In November, Ms Hand was awarded almost €250,000 damages after a High Court jury upheld her civil claim that she was raped by the Mixed Martial Arts fighter in a Dublin hotel in December 2018.

The judge directed that Mr McGregor return all the copies of the footage shown at the trial to his solicitor within a week, and the steps he has taken to follow this ruling must be put on an affidavit for when the case is heard again on February 12.

Mr Justice Owens also directed that €100,000 of the damages awarded to Ms Hand by the jury in this civil case be paid by Mr McGregor, along with €200,000 of the legal costs. He put a stay on the costs orders aside from these payments.

The final legal bill stands at €1.3m, the court heard on Thursday.

More to follow...