Publisher agrees to pay ‘substantial damages’ to waive long-standing legal claims.
Prince Harry has claimed a “monumental” victory over Rupert Murdoch’s UK newspaper group, after it issued an unprecedented apology for intruding into his private life for more than a decade.
King Charles’ younger son Harry sued The Sun and News Group Newspapers (NGN), publisher of the now-defunct News of the World, for illegally obtaining information about him between 1996 and 2011.
“Today, in a monumental victory, News UK has admitted that The Sun, the flagship title of Rupert Murdoch’s UK media empire, has indeed engaged in illegal practices,” said Harry and his co-claimant Tom Watson, a former lawmaker. , said in a statement. on Wednesday.
“Today the lies are exposed. Today the cover-up is exposed. And today it is proved that no one is above the law. It is time for accountability,” Harry’s lawyer David Sherborne told the High Court. A statement read out said.
Sherborne said NGN offered “a full and unequivocal apology to the Duke of Sussex for the serious intrusion into his private life.”
The publisher also apologized for interfering in the life of Harry’s mother, the late Princess Diana.
NGN agreed to pay Harry “substantial damages”.
It has now settled more than 1,300 claims – including those by celebrities and politicians – without going to trial, spending more than 1 billion pounds ($1.24 billion) in payouts and legal fees.
A trial to consider Harry’s case, and a similar trial of former MP Tom Watson, was due to start on Tuesday. But after a day’s delay, both sides reached an out-of-court settlement.
“This represents a vindication for the hundreds of other claimants who were strong-armed and unable to get to the bottom of what was done to them,” Sherborne said outside the High Court in London.
In a statement, an NGN spokesperson said its apology was for the illegal actions of private investigators working for The Sun, not its journalists.
“Today we have strong controls and processes in place across all of our titles to ensure this cannot happen again. There was no voicemail interception at The Sun,” the spokesman said, adding that the settlement does not preclude any legal action. Indicates a possible end to foraging, and that future cases will be thrown out.
