Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor has been formally summoned to give evidence in a High Court fraud dispute involving a Turkish businessman.
Nebahat Isbilen, an elderly Turkish millionaire, alleges that her former financial adviser, Selman Turk, deceived her over a £750,000 payment made to the former royal in 2019.
Before the trial, Mr Turk asked the court to require Mr Mountbatten-Windsor to testify.
A summons was issued this week ordering him to appear before the High Court in mid-December, either in person or via video link, the BBC reported.
Mr Mountbatten-Windsor has not been accused of wrongdoing, and the proceedings do not concern him directly.
He is nevertheless expected to face questions about his financial affairs.
He is the first member of the royal family to receive such a witness summons since the 19th century.
The judge had previously indicated that it was “unlikely that a person in the position of Mr Mountbatten-Windsor would wish voluntarily” to testify.
Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor has been summoned to give evidence in a High Court fraud case involving a Turkish businessman
In her complicated and long-running High Court claim, Mrs Isbilen alleges that Mr Turk misappropriated millions of pounds from her.
The dispute brought the York family into the spotlight after Mr Turk arranged payments of £350,000 to Andrew, £225,000 to the Duchess of York, £25,000 to Princess Eugenie and a £750,000 “gift” linked to Princess Beatrice’s wedding.
There has been no allegation of wrongdoing against any of the Yorks. In 2023, they reached an agreement with Mrs Isbilen to repay her an undisclosed sum.
Mrs Isbilen, 81, claims Mr Turk misrepresented the nature of payments made to the then-Duke of York and members of his family in 2019.
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She alleges that the banker diverted her money after she left Turkey and moved to Britain. Documents obtained by her legal team are said to indicate that significant sums from her accounts were transferred to the former Duke of York’s household.
Mr Turk denies the accusations. His legal representatives argue that Mr Mountbatten-Windsor could support his account of events and applied for permission to call him as a witness, despite the expectation that he might not wish to participate.
In a judgment issued on October 23, Mr Justice Johnson approved the application and allowed Mr Turk to seek evidence from the former prince.
The judge said: “Given the seriousness of the allegations, both on their own terms and in light of their wider impact, fairness requires that Mr Turk should be afforded an opportunity of putting forward his own case, using the evidence he considers relevant and material.”
He explained that his decision “give[s] Mr Turk permission to seek to call evidence from Mr Mountbatten-Windsor”. He added that this would “likely involve him issuing a witness summons”, which could be done without further court approval provided it was issued more than seven days before the trial began.
The trial had been scheduled to start during the week of November 16.
The judge had earlier suggested that a witness summons would “likely” be necessary to compel Andrew to give evidence.
He said: ‘I am content to find on the balance of probabilities that, had he been asked, Mr Mountbatten-Windsor would have declined to provide a witness statement.
‘It is highly unlikely that a person in the position of Mr Mountbatten-Windsor would wish voluntarily to provide a witness statement and give evidence at a trial in public proceedings involving payments made by the wife of a person said to be a political prisoner in Turkey, in connection with a dispute about the reason the payments were made.’
Lawyers for Mrs Isbilen have previously told the court in London that tens of millions of her funds had been misappropriated, with Mr Turk then failing to explain where the money had gone.
The High Court was also previously told by lawyers for Mrs Isbilen that ‘money was used for purposes unconnected with Mrs Isbilen, eg, substantial sums were paid to Prince Andrew, Duke of York, and to Sarah, Duchess of York’.
The court heard in 2023 that there had been a ‘settlement’ between Mrs Isbilen and the then-duke and duchess of York.