Prince Harry and other prominent figures have been ordered by London’s High Court to pay an interim sum of £9.54 million ($17.9 million Cdn) towards the legal fees of the Daily Mail’s publisher following their defeat in privacy lawsuits. The decision came after Judge Matthew Nicklin dismissed the case brought by Prince Charles’s younger son and several others, refuting claims of unlawful activities like phone hacking by the Mail titles.
Notable personalities such as Elton John, David Furnish, Sadie Frost, Elizabeth Hurley, Simon Hughes, and Doreen Lawrence were among the claimants suing Associated Newspapers. Judge Nicklin criticized the claimants’ case, stating that serious allegations were based on speculative and inferential grounds, deeming their conduct highly unreasonable.
Associated Newspapers hailed the ruling as a triumph for their journalism. The court mandated an “indemnity basis” payment, requiring Prince Harry and others to contribute to the publisher’s legal expenses without the need for justification of reasonableness.
During a hearing in July, Associated Newspapers disclosed legal costs of £34.5 million ($64.7 million Cdn), while Prince Harry and co-claimants were covered by an insurance policy limited to £16 million ($30 million Cdn). A representative for Harry did not immediately respond to requests for comment, with the prince previously expressing disappointment over the court’s decision.
Prince Harry and Meghan recently revealed their plans to relocate to the U.K. with their children after residing in California for the past six years. This legal battle marks the conclusion of a series of lawsuits filed by Harry against tabloid publishers for alleged unlawful practices.
In a previous case, Harry was awarded £140,600 (about $240,430 Cdn) for being a victim of phone-hacking and other illicit information gathering by journalists at Mirror Group Newspapers. The court stated that this ruling is the last pending litigation in Harry’s legal actions against tabloids.