Prince Harry wins legal battle with UK publisher in phone hacking case

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Princess Diana's bodyguard Lee Sansum recalls how young Prince William and Prince Harry reacted to the paparazzi

Prince Diana's former bodyguard Lee Sansum recalled how young Prince William and Prince Harry were affected by the paparazzi. He also explained why he believes the term "paparazzi" is "dehumanizing."

Prince Harry won his phone hacking lawsuit Friday against the publisher of the Daily Mirror and was awarded over 140,000 pounds or $180,000.

The 39-year-old called the ruling "vindicating and affirming."

Justice Timothy Fancourt of London’s High Court found that phone hacking was "widespread and habitual" at Mirror Group Newspapers over many years. Private investigators "were an integral part of the system" to gather information unlawfully on the British prince and his associates. Fancourt said that executives at the papers were aware of the practice and covered it up.

PRINCE HARRY ORDERED TO PAY DAILY MAIL PUBLISHER OVER $60K IN LEGAL FEES FOLLOWING FAILED COURT CHALLENGE

Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex, gives a thumbs up as he leaves after giving evidence at the Mirror Group Phone hacking trial at the Rolls Building at High Court on June 7, 2023, in London, England.  (Carl Court)

Fancourt found the U.K. outlets had invaded the father of two’s privacy by using unlawful information-gathering to produce 15 of the 33 articles examined at trial as a representative sampling from nearly 150 that Harry cited.

"Today is a great day for truth, as well as accountability," the younger son of King Charles III said in a statement shared by his lawyer outside court.

"I’ve been told that slaying dragons will get you burned. But in light of today’s victory and the importance of doing what is needed for a free and honest press, it is a worthwhile price to pay. The mission continues."

Prince Harry's lawyers read a statement from him outside of court. (Max Mumby/Indigo)

The ruling came days after Harry was ordered by another U.K. judge to pay nearly 50,000 pounds, or more than $60,000, in legal fees to the publisher of the Daily Mail following his failed court challenge. Harry sued Associated Newspapers Ltd. over an article that said he had tried to hide his efforts to retain publicly funded protection in the U.K. after leaving his role as a working member of the royal family.

The case against Mirror Group is the first of the prince’s several lawsuits against the media. It is one of three publishers he alleged unlawfully snooped on him for scoops on the royal family. He is also challenging the U.K. government’s decision to strip him of his security detail after he gave up his status as a working royal.

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Fancourt awarded the duke damages for the distress he suffered and a further sum for aggravated damages to "reflect the particular hurt and sense of outrage" over the fact that two directors at Trinity Mirror knew about the activity but failed to stop it.

"Instead of doing so, they turned a blind eye to what was going on and positively concealed it," said Fancourt. "Had the illegal conduct been stopped, the misuse of the duke’s private information would have ended much sooner."

Prince Harry stepped back as a senior royal in 2020. He resides in California. (Jonathan Brady/PA Images via Getty Images)

Harry had sought 440,000 pounds, or $560,000, as part of his life’s work to hold the U.K. press accountable for what he sees as its hounding of him and his family. It made him the first senior member of the British royal family to testify in court in over a century.

His ancestor, Prince Albert Edward, Queen Victoria’s eldest son who went on to become King Edward VII in 1901, appeared as a witness in a trial over a gambling scandal in 1891.

In June, Harry appeared in the witness box as he lobbed allegations that Mirror Group Newspapers had employed journalists who eavesdropped on voicemails and hired private investigators to use deception and unlawful means to learn about him and his family.

Harry alleged that Mirror Group Newspapers used unlawful means to produce nearly 150 stories about his early life between 1996 and 2010, including his romances, injuries and alleged drug use. The reporting caused great emotional distress, he said, but was hard to prove because the newspapers destroyed records.

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Prince Harry wrote about his beef with the U.K. press in his memoir "Spare." (Lev Radin/Pacific Press/LightRocket)

Of the 33 articles at the center of the trial, Mirror denied using unlawful reporting methods for 28 and made no admissions concerning the remaining five.

Harry had a tendency in his testimony "to assume that everything published was the product of voicemail interception," which was not the case, the judge said. He said Mirror Group was "not responsible for all of the unlawful activity directed at the duke."

Mirror Group welcomed the judgment for providing the "necessary clarity to move forward from events that took place many years ago."

"Where historical wrongdoing took place, we apologize unreservedly, have taken full responsibility, and paid appropriate compensation," the company said in a statement.

Prince Harry blamed the paparazzi for the death of his mother, Princess Diana. (Coventry Telegraph Archive)

Mirror Group Newspapers said it has paid more than 100 million pounds ($128 million) in other phone hacking lawsuits over the years but previously denied wrongdoing in Harry’s case. It said it used legitimate reporting methods to get information on the prince.

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In his memoir "Spare," which was published in January of this year, Harry blamed the paparazzi for causing the car crash that killed his mother, Princess Diana, in 1997. He also said intrusions by the press contributed to him and his wife, Meghan Markle, stepping back as senior royals.

Harry resides in California with the Duchess of Sussex and their young children.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.