Conor McGregor’s jury has said the rapes and cover-ups “can be considered serious” if they decide to award damages to the woman who accused an MMA fighter of rape.

A jury in the civil case against MMA fighter Conor McGregor has been told it can consider rapes and cover-ups, or evidence it considers “patently false”, when it comes to weighing punitive damages.

Jurors received some final legal advice from the trial judge, before beginning their deliberations on the action brought by Nikita Hand against Mr McGregor and his friend James Lawrence.

Ms Hand, a 35-year-old colorist from Drimnagh, claimed the two men raped her at the Beacon Hotel in Dublin on December 9, 2018, during a cocaine and alcohol fueled afterparty.

Both denied the mother-of-one’s allegations and claimed the sex was consensual.

Jurors were sent to consider their verdict at 3 p.m. yesterday, following a seven-hour arraignment by Judge Alexander Owens, following an 11-day case.

Judge Owens reviewed all the evidence heard at trial, before telling them: “That concludes the evidence.

I will now ask you, at this particular stage, to deliberate on your verdicts. He said he wanted to remind them that the burden of proof was on the complainant, Ms Hand, and that their verdict was based on the balance of probabilities.

Their conclusion must be based on evidence, he said.

If they come to decide damages, he said they should remember that general damages are awarded for pain and suffering today and tomorrow and that in cases of aggression, they should reflect elements of stress and humiliation.

They should also recognize that such damage can also be a sign of revenge. Enhanced damages can be awarded for events that shocked the plaintiff, he said, but he cautioned them not to “count twice” under different damages headings.

Exemplary or punitive damages are intended to punish a defendant, he said.

“You look at the evidence and decide whether or not you’re going to award punitive damages, for something that you consider to be really serious,” he explained.

“You have the right to view rapes or cover-ups as serious, or evidence you view as blatantly false in that regard as well.”

He urged them to “use common sense” and reminded them that all their decisions must be based on evidence. In the jury room, the jury will have a discussion paper on which they must record their decisions. The issue paper includes two questions.

First, did Conor McGregor assault Nikita Hand? They must answer yes or no. Second, did James Lawrence assault Nikita Hand?

This also has a yes or no answer. If the answer to both questions is no, then they go no further and Ms. Hand lost her case.

However, if the answer to the first question is yes, then they can assess damages under the following headings: general damages, special damages which include medical expenses and lost earnings, aggravated damages, and exemplary damages.

If the answer to the second question is yes, they can assess damages under the headings of general, aggravated, and exemplary damages.

The judge has already explained to the jury that no special damages can be awarded against Mr. Lawrence because Ms. Hand has no memory of having sex with him.

Her claim of post-traumatic stress disorder, which led to her continued need for counseling and her assertion that she cannot return to work, stemmed from the alleged rape by Mr McGregor, he said.

He reminded them yesterday that saying no to the allegation against one defendant does not mean they have to say no to the other. Likewise, a yes for one does not automatically mean a yes for the other.

“You are being asked to look at two different cases,” he said. After an hour, they were told they could go home, but must not discuss their deliberations with anyone, including relatives, before returning to work at the High Court today.