Virginia Giuffre was a central figure in the prolonged downfall of disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein, settled a sexual assault lawsuit against Britain's Prince Andrew, and became an advocate for sex trafficking survivors.
She came forward publicly after the initial investigation ended in an 18-month Florida jail term for Epstein, who made a secret deal and was released in 2009.
In subsequent lawsuits, it was said Ms Giuffre was a spa attendant as a teenager at Mar-a-Lago - US President Donald Trump's Palm Beach club - when she was approached in 2000 by Epstein's former girlfriend Ghislaine Maxwell.
She was hired as a masseuse for Epstein and was flown around the world for meetings with men at his behest, while she was 17 and 18.
Prince Andrew paid millions to settle a civil sexual assault case with Ms Giuffre in 2022, whom he said he had never met.
She sued him for allegedly sexually assaulting her when she was 17 after she was trafficked by Epstein.
Although the parties settled the case, the agreement is not an admission of guilt from the prince and he has always strenuously denied the allegations against him.
In a Newsnight interview with the BBC's Emily Maitlis in November 2019, Andrew denied claims that he slept with Ms Giuffre on three separate occasions, saying: "I can absolutely categorically tell you it never happened. I have no recollection of ever meeting this lady, none whatsoever."
The duke also said he has no memory of a well-known photograph of him with his arm around Ms Giuffre's waist at Maxwell's house, and has questioned whether it was his own hand in the image.
The fallout from the interview saw the royal criticised for showing a lack of empathy towards Epstein's victims and a lack of remorse over his friendship with the disgraced financier.
American-born Ms Giuffre lived in Australia for years and became an advocate for sex trafficking survivors.
Ms Giuffre, who was believed to have separated from her husband, was treated in an Australian hospital after a serious accident, her publicist said last month.
She did not answer questions about the date, location, nature or other specifics of the accident and about the accuracy of an Instagram post that appeared from Ms Giuffre in which she said she had been in a car that was hit by a school bus, and her prognosis was dire.
She was taken to a Perth hospital following the collision on 24 March.
In an emotional post on social media, she expressed that she was ready to die.
"I've gone into kidney renal failure, they've given me four days to live, transferring me to a specialist hospital in urology," she said.
"I'm ready to go, just not until I see my babies one last time."
According to reports, a spokesperson for Ms Giuffre said the Instagram post was a mistake and she had meant to share the post to her private Facebook page.
She was charged with breaching a family violence restraining order in Ocean Reef, near Perth, on 2 February, Western Australia (WA) Courts said.
Ms Giuffre's case was first heard in Joondalup Magistrates' Court in northern Perth on 14 March, where she did not enter a plea.
The matter was adjourned to 11 June for a plea hearing, according to Western Australia Courts.
Ms Giuffre died aged 41 and is survived by her three children.
She is understood to have died at her farm in Western Australia.
Police confirmed emergency services received reports of an unresponsive woman at a property in the Perth suburb of Neergabby last night.
Her family said in a statement Ms Giuffre was a "fierce warrior in the fight against sexual abuse".
The statement added: "She was the light that lifted so many survivors. Despite all the adversity she faced in her life, she shone so bright. She will be missed beyond measure."
