Prince Harry and other well-known individuals have been instructed by London’s High Court to pay an interim sum of £9.54 million ($17.9 million Cdn) in legal costs to the publisher of the Daily Mail following their unsuccessful privacy lawsuits. The ruling came after Judge Matthew Nicklin dismissed the case brought by Prince Harry and others, refuting claims of unlawful activities such as phone hacking by the Mail titles.
Among the claimants were singer Elton John, his husband David Furnish, actors Sadie Frost, and Elizabeth Hurley, as well as former Liberal Democratic MP Simon Hughes and anti-racism activist Doreen Lawrence. The court criticized the claimants’ case presentation, stating that serious allegations were based on speculative grounds.
Associated Newspapers hailed the ruling as a victory for their journalism, emphasizing that the outstanding payment must be made on an “indemnity basis.” This means that as the losing party, Prince Harry and the other claimants are obligated to contribute to the publisher’s legal expenses without the need for justification of the costs.
During a hearing in July, it was disclosed that Associated had amassed legal fees of £34.5 million ($64.7 million Cdn), while Prince Harry and the other claimants were covered by an insurance policy of £16 million ($30 million Cdn). The possibility of an appeal by the claimants is still pending.
Prince Harry’s spokesperson refrained from commenting on the latest ruling. The prince and his wife, Meghan, recently announced their plans to return to the UK, where they intend to enroll their children in school after residing in California for the past six years.
The legal battle marks the final litigation in a series of lawsuits filed by Prince Harry against tabloid publishers for alleged unlawful practices. Previously, he was awarded £140,600 (about $240,430 Cdn) in a case where the High Court found him to be a victim of phone hacking and other illicit information gathering by journalists at Mirror Group Newspapers.
In a separate incident, the Rupert Murdoch-led News Group in the UK issued a formal apology to Prince Harry for unauthorized phone hacking and privacy breaches. However, the court dismissed claims of a clandestine agreement between Murdoch’s newspaper group and Buckingham Palace to prevent royal lawsuits.
In a landmark event in 2023, Prince Harry became the first British royal in 130 years to provide evidence during a trial. The legal battles have underscored the ongoing tension between the royal family and the media industry.