Why Prince Harry And Elton John Are Suing the Daily Mail

Harry stepped out at High Court again Tuesday but skipped the proceedings Wednesday. The company’s lawyers said the group of individuals should have suspected they were the potential victims of illegal behaviour at a much earlier stage, when phone hacking was first in the news more than a decade ago or they first saw suspicious articles. Prince Harry seems to be done with the royal family’s shenanigans when it comes to their uncomfortably close relationship with the  press. So, the Duke of Sussex took a burn-it-all-down approach with his witness statement on Tuesday in court. Prince Harry was in a London court Monday as the lawyer for a group of British tabloids prepared to ask a judge to toss out lawsuits by the prince, Elton John and several other celebrities who allege phone tapping and other invasions of privacy.
He is also suing ANL after its Mail on Sunday newspaper published a story about his separate legal proceedings against the UK’s Home Office over his family’s security arrangements when visiting Britain. The publisher has rejected the allegations as “preposterous smears” and labeled the lawsuit as a “pre-planned and orchestrated attempt to drag the Mail titles into the phone-hacking scandal,” according to PA Media. “The claimants each claim that in different ways they were the victim of numerous unlawful acts carried out by the defendant, or by those acting on the instructions of its newspapers, the Daily Mail and the Mail on Sunday,” David Sherborne, head lawyer for the group, said. Evidence at the centre of breach of privacy claims against the publisher of the Daily Mail is centred on an alleged confession and denial by a private investigator over his role in unlawful information gathering. The Duke of Sussex, 38, is one of several high-profile stars suing the publisher behind sites such as Daily Mail, Mail Online and the Mail on Sunday over the alleged unlawful gathering of information, including invasion of privacy and phone-tapping.

Harry's presence at the High Court in London is a sign of the importance he attaches to the lawsuit he and other celebrities have filed against a group of British tabloids. Harry, the younger son of King Charles III, and his wife, the former actress Meghan Markle, stepped down as working royals in 2020 and moved to the U.S., citing what they described as the unbearable intrusions and racist attitudes of the British media. Town & Country understands that Prince William and his family are not at their Windsor home this  week as the three children are on holiday from school for the Easter break.
The family's current security situation is similar to that of Harry's late mother Princess Diana who had to rely on private security protection after her divorce from Harry's father Prince Charles in 1996. The 38-year-old prince wants to pay personally for police security when he comes to Britain, but the government said that wasn’t possible. Last year, a judge gave Harry permission tosue the government.That case has yet to come to trial. Harry's presence at the High Court in London is a sign of the importance he attaches to the case, one of several lawsuits the Duke of Sussex has brought against the media.

Though not required to attend, his spokesperson told Reuters he wanted to publicly signal support for the case. Appearance generated media attention and speculation about whether he would meet with his father, King Charles, or his brother William, though he reportedly will not. Reuters, the news and media division of Thomson Reuters, is the world’s largest multimedia news provider, reaching billions of people worldwide every day. Reuters provides business, financial, national and international news to professionals via desktop terminals, the world's media organizations, industry events and directly to consumers.
The hearing will not require oral evidence, making Harry’s appearance at court even more unusual. Despite the ongoing legal battle, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex have continued to visit the U.K. In June, they traveled there with their children, Archie Harrison, 3, and  Lilibet "Lili" Diana, 13 months, forQueen Elizabeth II's Platinum Jubilee celebration. Their daughter celebrated her first birthday during the trip, her first in the country. Harry and Meghan, who are often seen with bodyguards in public, and the Royal family have not disclosed what security arrangements were granted to the family.
They added that there was "no basis" to conclude that the duke making representations to the committee would have resulted in a different outcome. Prince Harry's lawyer appeared in court on Thursday to appeal a decision that affects his security. Prince Harry alleges that he lost friends, citing "paranoia" over the "unlawful" stories that ANL newspapers published.

Media intrusion was one of the reasons Harry and Meghan, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, cited for stepping back from royal duties and moving to California to forge new lives and careers. They fiercely attacked the press in their recent six-part Netflix documentary series and in Harry's memoir "Spare". Prince Harry has sued the Mail for  libel over an article about his security arrangements, and last year won damages from the same paper after another defamation claim. Harry’s lawyers have said the prince is reluctant to bring the couple’s children — Prince Archie, who is almost 4, and Princess Lilibet, nearly 2 — to his homeland because it is not safe. One Sussex fan tweeted the picture with the caption, "That feeling when you’re about to take down the daily mail."
Prince Harry’s lawyers claim that the Duke of Sussex and his fellow claimants are victims of extreme breach of privacy. On Monday, March 27, 2023, Harry made a surprise appearance at London’s High Court although it is unclear whether he had any plans to meet up with family members while back in his native England. The hearing resumes Wednesday over the issue of whether the six-year deadline to bring a lawsuit had expired before Harry and the others filed suit. Nicklin suggested he could end up issuing a stay that would allow the claimants a chance to get restrictions lifted so they can use the documents. He also could prevent the claimants from using evidence that is vital to their case. The Duke of Sussex also has an ongoing case with ANL over an article published in February 2022, regarding a lawsuit he launched against the British Home Office over security arrangements for when he and Meghan Markle are in the U.K.
Prince Harry took the stand on Tuesday and he directly points his finger at the Palace Press Staff members. Prince Harry's lawsuit against the publisher of the Daily Mirror newspaper over allegations of phone hacking will go to trial in May, a judge at London's High Court ruled on Wednesday. LONDON — — Prince Harry and Elton John were in a London court Monday as the lawyer for a group of British tabloids asked a judge to toss the lawsuit they brought with several other  high-profile people who allege phone hacking and other invasions of privacy.