First off, to be clear: this was not a criminal case. While Gardai and the Director of Public Prosecutions
did a full investigation into the December 2018 incident after it occurred, they determined there was insufficient evidence to secure a conviction in criminal court. That led Hand to seek recourse in civil court, where a two week trial ended with McGregor being found liable.
Hand was seeking damages – general, special, aggravated, and punitive – for the incident and her inability to work due to mental health reasons, according to court documents. In the statement of claim reported by
The New York Times in 2021, Hand sought damages of $1.79-$2.13 million for the same.
They actually only decided to award her damages in relation to two of those four categories: general and special,” Greaney said. “There was no compensation given for aggravated or punitive. We don’t know the reasoning behind that. We know the figure. We know that for things like medical bills, loss of earnings, you know, psychiatrist bills, and and things like that, she was awarded just under a quarter of a million euros.
“They would also have had the option to award her damages to punish Mr. McGregor for what he did, to send out a message that this type of behavior isn’t acceptable in this society. Particularly when it comes to rape, the judge told them that they’re entitled to make that conclusion. But for whatever reason — again, we don’t know why — they didn’t award damages in those particular categories.
The jury ruled against Hand in a case she brought against one of McGregor’s friends, James Lawrence, whom she accused of having sex with her in the hotel without consent.