Wednesday 22 / January / 2025
London: Prince Harry on Wednesday settled a lawsuit at the High Court in London with Rupert Murdoch's UK tabloid publisher amid allegations that the company invaded the royal's privacy.
Harry's lawyer, David Sherborne, said the Murdoch company would pay Harry a substantial sum in the settlement. A source told Reuters news agency that the sum was eight figures.
The move came after Murdoch's News Group Newspapers (NGN) issued an apology to the Duke of Sussex.
The Murdoch company, which published UK tabloid The Sun and the now defunct News of the World paper, offered a "full and unequivocal apology to the Duke of Sussex."
Rupert Murdoch is an Australian-born US media mogul who owns outlets around the world, including The Times in the UK, the Wall Street Journal and Fox News Channel in the US. Murdoch has conservative views and his outlets are known for leaning to the right.
NGN attorney Anthony Hudson said the apology to Harry was "for the phone hacking, surveillance and misuse of private information by journalists and private investigators instructed by them at the News of the World."
NGN also said it offers a "full unequivocal apology to Lord Watson for the unwarranted intrusion carried out into his private life during his time in Government by the News of the World during the period 2009-2011."
Tom Watson, a member of the House of Lords, is a former Labour Party lawmaker who is also a claimant in the case.
Harry welcomes a 'monumental victory'
The settlement came just before Harry's lawsuit would have gone to trial. Harry and other claimants would have had to pay a hefty legal bill even if they won the case against NGN.
"In a monumental victory today, News UK have admitted that The Sun, the flagship title for Rupert Murdoch's UK media empire, has indeed engaged in illegal practices," Harry and Watson said in a joint statement.
"Today the lies are laid bare. Today the cover-ups are exposed. And today proves that no one stands above the law. The time for accountability has arrived," they added.
Harry and Watson were the last two people out of 1,300 claimants who had settled suits with News Group Newspapers due to allegations of phone hacking and intrusion. Harry said the settlement was not due to financial reasons, but to hold executives and editors at NGN to account.
Harry has filed three lawsuits against outlets for invading his privacy. He won a case against the publisher of the Daily Mirror over phone hacking and will also go to trial against the publisher of the Daily Mail next year for the same reason.
Harry has had a fractious the British media and believes they unfairly attack his wife, US actress Meghan Markle. The couple currently live in the US.
The Duke of Sussex also believes British media is partly culpable for the 1997 death of his mother, Diana, Princess of Wales. Diana was being chased by paparazzi vehicles in Paris when she died in a car crash.
