LONDON – Prince Harry’s legal battle against the publisher of The Sun tabloid, accusing them of unlawful snooping on him, has received a mixed ruling from a High Court judge. The lawsuit can proceed to trial, but not on the allegations of phone hacking. The judge also ruled out dealing with a claim related to a secret settlement pact with the royal family.
Prince Harry, the Duke of Sussex, alleged that News Group Newspapers (NGN), owned by Rupert Murdoch, had hacked his phone, used investigators, and employed deception to gather unlawful information about him dating back two decades. NGN argued that the claims were brought after the six-year limitation period had expired, and therefore, the suit should be thrown out.
Justice Timothy Fancourt acknowledged that Harry was aware of the phone hacking scandal that rocked Britain over a decade ago and could have brought his own case sooner. However, the judge allowed the lawsuit to proceed on allegations of other unlawful information gathering, such as hiring private investigators to dig up information about him.
News Group Newspapers considered the ruling a “significant victory” as it reduced the scope of Harry’s legal claim.
The phone hacking scandal in Britain began with News of the World and later spread to other newspapers. Murdoch closed News of the World in 2011, and the scandal led to numerous legal settlements. However, The Sun has not admitted any wrongdoing.
The ruling in Harry’s case was similar to one made in a case involving actor Hugh Grant, where phone hacking allegations were also dismissed. Harry and Grant’s cases were argued together in April, and their trial is scheduled to begin in January.
Although part of Harry’s lawsuit was rejected, he attempted to amend the case to include allegations of a secret agreement between Buckingham Palace and Murdoch executives to prevent him from bringing his claims earlier. However, the judge denied this effort, stating that Harry failed to produce sufficient evidence of such a deal.
Harry broke with tradition and became the first senior member of the royal family to testify in court in over a century. He testified in a separate phone hacking lawsuit against the publishers of the Daily Mirror, seeking £440,000 ($563,000) in damages.
This is one of several privacy cases Prince Harry is pursuing in the High Court, and the judge’s ruling indicates that winning some of the claims may be challenging. The court is expected to rule on another unlawful information gathering lawsuit against the publishers of the Daily Mail.