London: Prince Harry has had a tumultuous relationship with the media and blames the media for the death of his mother, Princes Diana, who died in a Paris car accident in 1997 while evading paparazzi.
In 2020, Harry and his wife, Meghan, stepped back from their royal responsibilities and moved to California, partially attributing the decision to media scrutiny. The prince has engaged in several legal disputes with British tabloids over privacy issues and has made it his life’s mission to reform the British media.
The breakdown of active legal matters
Mirror Group Newspapers
Harry is one of many famous people suing Mirror Group Newspapers (MGN) for damages related to illegal information gathering, including phone hacking, at its publications. This is one of four representative cases chosen for a trial and will aid the court in determining the sum of damages to be awarded if their claim is successful.
MGN, which published The Sunday People, The Sunday Mirror, and The Mirror at the start of the trial, accepted some evidence of illegal information collecting, including a piece about Harry.
However, it has refuted all claims of voicemail interception and contended that some of the allegations were made too late.
Associated Newspapers
Many claimants, including pop star Elton John and Harry, have started legal cases against the publisher of The Mail on Sunday and The Daily Mail tabloids over alleged privacy breaches.
They blamed Associated Newspapers (ANL) for methods such as tapping phone calls, impersonating individuals to obtain medical information, and hiring private investigators for articles.
The claimants’ attorneys claimed that while some allegedly illegal conduct occurred as recently as 2018, others were committed between 1993 and 2011. ANL has refuted the accusations, claiming no need for a trial. At a later time, a decision is anticipated.
ANL libel claim
In a second case, Harry accuses the publisher of the Daily Mail of libel for publishing information about his separate legal dispute with the British government over security measures while he was in the country. According to a piece in The Mail on Sunday newspaper from February 2022, Harry allegedly tried to conceal the legal dispute.
ANL argued that the article did not cause “serious” reputational harm and expressed an “honest opinion.”
The court has rejected ANL’s defense, and Harry’s legal team has asked for a verdict in his favor without a trial. At a later time, a choice is anticipated.
News Group Newspapers
Harry is suing News Group Newspapers (NGN), part of Rupert Murdoch’s global media empire, for unlawful information-gathering. The publisher of tabloids The Sun and the now-defunct News of the World asks the court to throw out the claims without trial, arguing they were brought too late.
However, Harry claims in court documents that a “secret agreement” between the royal family as an institution and the publisher is to blame for the delay in bringing a lawsuit against NGN.
Such an agreement does not exist, according to NGN. Similar allegations were made against NGN by British actor Hugh Grant, and the High Court recently decided to allow the case to proceed to trial. — AFP/APP
