Prince Andrew 'deeply worried' over legal team's 'shambolic' strategy: Report

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Prince Andrew is now in crisis talks with top advisors after his high-priced legal eagles were “outwitted and outplayed” by sex-trafficking victim Virginia Roberts Giuffre’s wily, street smart lawyer.

Giuffre is suing the 61-year-old royal, claiming he sexually assaulted her on three occasions when she was underage.

Andrew has vehemently denied the allegations that stem from his long-time friendship with predatory pedophile Jeffrey Epstein. Giuffre claims Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell forced her to have sex with Andrew in London, New York and the Caribbean.

While the prince had taken a blase approach to the allegations with a mixture of tea and hubris, his legal setbacks are mounting. And now he’s said to be “deeply worried” about his team’s legal strategy — and his future prospects.

“The plan, if you can call it a plan, has been shambolic from the start,” a source close to the prince told the Daily Mirror. “Now it’s all come to a head. He is extremely worried and the crisis talks are on so he can get off the back foot. He knows he’s in a full-on crisis.”

The source added: “The damage to his reputation is there for all to see but now he’s feeling the pressure from his family, though none of them have become directly involved. The whole thing’s a disaster.”

Royal insiders told the Daily Mail’s veteran royal correspondent Rebecca English that communication between the prince’s U.K. lawyers and his U.S. lawyer is part of the problem.

For starters, Andrew’s game of “cat and mouse” with Giuffre’s reps trying to serve him papers has backfired.

And insiders fear the Duke of York’s “wall of silence” strategy is damaging the monarchy.

“There is growing disquiet over the advice being given to the duke by his London legal team in the face of this potentially highly damaging lawsuit which also has wider reputational implications for the institution of the monarchy,” a royal source told the Daily Telegraph.

“The legal team’s wall of silence and policy of evasion only adds to the impression (that) the Duke has something to hide and there is widespread concern that things have been allowed to get to this point.”

According to the Mail, Andrew engaged his British firm following his disastrous BBC interview. In that train wreck, the prince showed little sympathy for Epstein’s numerous victims and didn’t appear to regret the friendship.

His initial goal was said to be to derail FBI inquiries about his friendship with Epstein.

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But the approach taken by Andrew’s legal team has allowed American prosecutors to mock the prince for not cooperating.

Giuffre is seeking unspecified damages but as reported on Sunday, it’s believed they could total in the millions.

bhunter@postmedia.com

@HunterTOSun