Current:Home > MarketsPrince Harry wins phone hacking lawsuit against British tabloid publisher, awarded 140,000 pounds -RiseUp Capital Academy
Prince Harry wins phone hacking lawsuit against British tabloid publisher, awarded 140,000 pounds
View
Date:2025-04-15 06:51:09
LONDON (AP) — Prince Harry won his phone hacking lawsuit Friday against the publisher of the Daily Mirror and was awarded over 140,000 pounds ($180,000) in the first of his several lawsuits against British tabloids to go to trial.
Justice Timothy Fancourt in the High Court found phone hacking was “widespread and habitual” at Mirror Group Newspapers over many years and private investigators “were an integral part of the system” to gather information unlawfully. He said executives at the papers were aware of the practice and covered it up.
Fancourt said he awarded the Duke of Sussex damages for 15 of the 33 newspaper articles in question at trial that were the result of unlawful information gathering and resulted in the misuse of the Harry’s private information.
The judge also added damages for the distress the duke 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 and didn’t stop it.
“Instead of doing so, they turned a blind eye to what was going on and positively concealed it,” Fancourt said. “Had the illegal conduct been stopped, the misuse of the duke’s private information would have ended much sooner.”
Harry, the estranged younger son of King Charles III, had sought 440,000 pounds ($560,000) as part of a crusade against the British media that bucked his family’s longstanding aversion to litigation and made him the first senior member of the royal family to testify in court in over a century.
His appearance in the witness box over two days in June created a spectacle 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 other family members.
“I believe that phone hacking was at an industrial scale across at least three of the papers at the time,” Harry asserted in the High Court. “That is beyond any doubt.”
The judge said that Harry had a tendency in his testimony “to assume that everything published was the product of voicemail interception,” which was not the case. He said the Mirror Group was “not responsible for all of the unlawful activity directed at the duke.”
veryGood! (73586)
Related
- Meta donates $1 million to Trump’s inauguration fund
- 18 dead frozen puppies discovered in Oregon home were meant as snake food, officials say
- 1886 shipwreck found in Lake Michigan by explorers using newspaper clippings as clues: Bad things happen in threes
- Judge sets April 15 trial date in Trump hush money case, rejecting request for a delay
- Skins Game to make return to Thanksgiving week with a modern look
- Olivia Colman slams Hollywood pay disparities and says she'd earn more if she were a man
- Shop 52 Bravo-Approved Amazon Deals: Kyle Richards, Ariana Madix, Teresa Giudice, Gizelle Bryant & More
- Boys, ages 12, 7, accused of stabbing 59-year-old woman in Harris County, Texas: Police
- Travis Hunter, the 2
- Aruba Embraces the Rights of Nature and a Human Right to a Clean Environment
Ranking
- Trump suggestion that Egypt, Jordan absorb Palestinians from Gaza draws rejections, confusion
- 'A race against time:' video shows New Jersey firefighters freeing dog from tire rim
- Trump could learn Monday how NY wants to collect $457M owed in his civil fraud case
- Is the war on drugs back on? | The Excerpt podcast
- The Super Bowl could end in a 'three
- Bradford pear trees are banned in a few states. More are looking to replace, eradicate them.
- Academics challenge Florida law restricting research exchanges from prohibited countries like China
- Anne Hathaway Shares She Suffered Miscarriage Before Welcoming Sons With Adam Shulman
Recommendation
Off the Grid: Sally breaks down USA TODAY's daily crossword puzzle, Triathlon
This women's sports bar is a game changer in sports entertainment
Why Euphoria Season 3 Is Delayed Even Longer
Shannen Doherty applauds Princess Kate for 'strength' amid cancer battle, slams rumors
Selena Gomez's "Weird Uncles" Steve Martin and Martin Short React to Her Engagement
As Boeing turbulence persists: A look at past crashes and safety issues involving the plane maker
Blizzard brewing in Northern Plains, Upper Midwest as spring storm targets region
'American Idol': Former 'Bachelor' Juan Pablo Galavis makes surprise cameo for daughter's audition