Pallade Veneta - Andrew Tate accusers suing for 'six-figure' sum, UK court hears

Papers filed last week accuse Tate, a self-described misogynist, of rape and sexual assault, and of pointing a gun at a woman's face.

Judge Richard Armstrong told a preliminary hearing of the civil case on Tuesday that the claimants were "seeking damages likely to reach six figures", and that there could be a three-week trial in early 2027.

Anne Studd, who is representing the women, said in a written submission that the case "is understood to be the first claim where allegations of coercive control have been considered in a civil context of whether that behaviour can amount to intentional infliction of harm".

She called coercive control "a form of grooming and manipulation".

Armstrong allowed the women's request for one expert witness to appear, but rejected another.

Court papers seen by AFP claim that Tate, a former professional kickboxer, grabbed one woman by the throat several times in 2015. He is also accused of assaulting her with a belt and raping her.

Tate's lawyer called the claims a "fabrication" and a "pack of lies".

A second woman alleges that Tate strangled her without her consent during sex in 2015. A third accuses him of raping her in 2013, and a fourth said Tate throttled her until she passed out during sex, then continued to have sex and threatened to kill her.

The civil case comes after the UK Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) decided in 2019 not to take action.

Matt Jury, a lawyer whose practice is representing the women, told the BBC that his clients had "been denied justice by the police and CPS, while watching Andrew Tate's influence grow".

Tate is facing legal action in several countries, including some cases where he is accused alongside his brother Tristan Tate.

In Romania, the Tate brothers face separate allegations of trafficking minors, sexual intercourse with a minor and money laundering.

H.Ercolani--PV