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Verdicts & Settlements

Prince Harry Settles U.K. Privacy Lawsuits with Rupert Murdoch-owned Tabloid


— January 22, 2025

“We acknowledge and apologize for the distress cause to the duke, and the damage inflicted on relationships, friendships and family, and have agreed to pay him substantial damages,” News Group Newspapers said in a settlement statement.


Prince Harry of the United Kingdom has secured an unprecedented settlement from Rupert Murdoch-owned News Group Newspapers.

“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,” said Harry and co-defendant Tom Watson in a statement.

According to The Associated Press, representatives for News Group Newspapers agreed to acknowledge that its private investigators and reporters relentlessly targeted Harry for surveillance and smartphone hacking.

Under the terms of the settlement, the media outlet provided Harry with a “full and unequivocal apology” for intruding upon his privacy. It will also pay substantial damages to settle Harry’s privacy-related claims.

“We acknowledge and apologize for the distress cause to the duke, and the damage inflicted on relationships, friendships and family, and have agreed to pay him substantial damages,” News Group Newspapers said in a settlement statement.

Gavel on copy of lawsuit; image by Wirestock, via Freepik.com.
Gavel on copy of lawsuit; image by Wirestock, via Freepik.com.

News Group, notes The Associated Press, has “long acknowledged” that Harry’s phones were hacked by another Murdoch-owned tabloid, News of the world staff. However, even after News of the World shut down in 2011, the company never formally admitted wrongdoing.

Harry later promised to take the News Group-owned Sun tabloid to trial; his complaint was one of 1,300 filed against it and other News Group Newspaper outlets.

“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,” said David Sherborne, an attorney representing Harry.

“This represents a vindication for the hundreds of other claimants who were strong-armed into settling without being able to get to the truth of what was done to them,” Sherborne said.

In total, News Group Newspaper has spent more than $1.24 billion settling varied claims against it.

However, in its own statement, News Group Newspaper clarified that it has only apologized for the unlawful actions of private investigators hired by the Sun—not the actions of its journalists.

News Group Newspaper also said that it now has protocols to prevent misconduct.

“There are strong controls and processes in place at all our titles today to ensure this cannot happen now,” a News Group Newspaper spokesperson said.

Nevertheless, Sherborne told The Associated Press that the company still has questions to answer. According to Sherborne, the News Group and its subsidiaries engaged in both “perjury and cover-ups” to obscure the extent of its unlawful practices, deleting millions of emails and other records that should have been obtained through discovery.

Harry’s case against News Group Newspaper was one of three lawsuits filed against British tabloids. He has since resolved claims against the publisher of the Daily Mirror, and is continuing to press litigation in a similar claim against the Daily Mail.

Sources

Murdoch’s UK tabloids apologize to Prince Harry and admit intruding on the late Princess Diana

Prince Harry hails ‘monumental’ legal win over Murdoch newspapers

Prince Harry settles lawsuit with Rupert Murdoch’s newspapers after ‘full’ apology

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