Subscribe for full access to The Hollywood Reporter
Subscribe for full access to The Hollywood Reporter
The Prince accused British tabloid The Daily Mirror of hacking his phone and other illegal behavior in order to break stories about his private life.
By Scott Roxborough
Europe Bureau Chief
Prince Harry won a partial victory in his legal battle against British tabloid publisher the Mirror Group, when a court awarded the royal $180,000 (140,000 pounds) in damages in his phone-hacking case.
Prince Harry accused Mirror Group tabloids of hacking his phone and other illegal activities aimed at finding out private information that could then be turned into news stories. He claimed he was the victim of more than 140 instances of illegal news gathering.
The ruling, announced Friday, Dec. 15, could have major implications for the British media.
“Today is a great day for truth, as well as accountability,” Harry said in a statement read by his lawyer outside court, per the Associated Press. “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.”
Harry became the first British royal in 130 years to appear in a witness box for the dramatic seven-week trial, telling the court that dozens of news stories about his personal life, his relationships and his family, using information illegally obtained, were published in the Daily Mirror, the Sunday Mirror and People between 1995 and 2011.
The damages payment is a bit more than half the 320,000 pounds Harry had been seeking. Harry alleged he was the victim of more than 140 instances of illegal news gathering. The trial tested the evidence regarding 33 of those stories, finding that 15 of the 33 sample articles were the product of phone hacking or other unlawful information gathering.
The news comes just days after a court ruled Harry had to pay the Mail on Sunday more than 48,000 pounds ($61,000) in legal costs after he lost an attempt to get part of the paper’s defense in a libel case thrown out.
The trial highlighted the shady methods of the British tabloids, including the role of former Mirror editor Piers Morgan in widespread phone hacking. Harry has several other lawsuits pending, including one against Rupert Murdoch’s News Group Newspapers (NGN), publisher of The Sun and the now defunct News of the World tabloids, as well as a case against Associated Newspapers, in which the accusers include the singer Elton John.
Sign up for THR news straight to your inbox every day
Sign up for THR news straight to your inbox every day
Subscribe for full access to The Hollywood Reporter
Send us a tip using our anonymous form.