Prince Harry and six other high-profile figures have been ordered to pay an initial £9.54 million ($13 million) in legal costs following their privacy lawsuit against the Daily Mail publisher. The group, which includes musician Elton John, actress Liz Hurley, and Baroness Doreen Lawrence, must settle the amount within seven days. The publisher is pursuing a total costs order of £34.4 million, though a judge has indicated the full sum may be excessive.
The seven plaintiffs sued Associated Newspapers over allegations of unlawful information gathering practices. However, their case was dismissed entirely last month when Justice Nicklin determined they failed to substantiate their claims. The judge noted the lawsuit had shifted away from its original allegations toward broader criticisms of the publisher’s practices and corporate response to previous inquiries.
The interim payment ruling comes just days after Prince Harry and his wife Meghan Markle announced plans to return to the United Kingdom with their children. Following the verdict, Harry and Lawrence released a joint statement expressing disappointment, characterizing the outcome as a “complete and obvious whitewash.” Associated Newspapers responded by calling the ruling “a devastating critique” of what it described as an attempt to damage the newspaper and its staff.
Originally reported by Variety →
About the Author
