Prince Andrew's demand of 'trial by jury' puts him on 'collision course with the Palace'

The royal family is "desperate" for Andrew to settle the case instead of making a spectacle of the British monarchy.

Prince Andrew has demanded "trial by jury" after denying 41 claims made by Virginia Giuffre in the sex abuse case against him. However, his family is reportedly not happy with his move and doesn't want to get dragged into the courtroom drama.

The Duke of York filed his first reply to the lawsuit on Wednesday, in which he denied most of Giuffre's claims citing lack of "sufficient information." The document filed by his legal counsel Andrew Brettler also mentioned that the royal "hereby demands a trial by jury on all causes of action asserted in the complaint."

According to a report in Mail Online, Andrew's decisions are in contrast with the wishes of the British royal family who are "desperate" for him to settle the case instead of making a spectacle of the British monarchy with a trial in New York. In addition, the trial is expected to be held later this year when Andrew's mother Queen Elizabeth II will be celebrating 70-years of her reign as the monarch of the United Kingdom.

A source said, "Andrew is on collision course with the Palace over this."

It comes after Buckingham palace announced in a two-sentence statement that Prince Andrew has been stripped of his remaining patronages and His Royal Highness title and will be fighting the lawsuit against him as a "private citizen." Media lawyer Mark Stephens said that despite the palace cutting ties with the disgraced royal, the upcoming trial against him as well as the legal proceedings before it will overshadow the Queen's Platinum Jubilee and threaten the existence of the monarchy.

"I can't conceive that the royal family will allow him to run this case and overshadow the Platinum Jubilee," Stephens said.

He further explained, "It's going to spark a debate about the relevancy and appropriateness of the royal family and we've already seen that they moved very fast to strip him of his titles and that debate abated, but the more detail that comes out the more there's going to be a problem for the wider royal family."