The 2nd US Circuit Court of Appeals in Manhattan said there was a presumption the public had a right to see the April 2016 deposition, which was taken in a now-settled civil defamation lawsuit by Virginia Giuffre, one of Epstein's accusers.

In its unsigned order, the appeals court also said US District Judge Loretta Preska in Manhattan did not abuse her discretion in rejecting Maxwell's "meritless arguments" that her interests superseded that presumption.

Lawyers for Maxwell did not immediately respond to requests for comment, including whether they will further appeal.

The British socialite had argued she thought the 418-page deposition was confidential and releasing it could undermine her ability to defend against criminal charges that she enabled Epstein's sexual abuses.

Her lawyers have said bad publicity from disclosing "intimate, sensitive, and personal" details from the deposition would violate Maxwell's right against self-incrimination and imperil a fair trial because jurors might hold it against her.

The appeals court separately rejected Maxwell's request to modify a protective order in her criminal case, and let her use confidential materials produced by the government to try to persuade Preska not to unseal the deposition.

Maxwell, 58, has pleaded not guilty to helping Epstein recruit and groom underage girls as young as 14 to engage in illegal sexual acts in the mid-1990s, and not guilty to perjury for having denied involvement.

Giuffre said she was a teenager when Maxwell pulled her into Epstein's circle, where she was groomed and trafficked for sex with Epstein and other wealthy, powerful men.

The push to have the deposition unsealed came from Giuffre and the Miami Herald, which investigated Epstein's conduct, his accusers and his efforts to avoid sex trafficking charges.

Australian Associated Press