title: Prince Harry Scored a Partial Victory in His Phone Hacking Case Against Mirror Group Newspapers
After a tough legal battle, Prince Harry (39) recently scored a small triumph: the British Guardian reported that he secured a victory in his phone hacking case against Mirror Group Newspapers (MGN). This success comes after an earlier court defeat, as the BBC and other sources revealed. Now, he's entitled to compensation for the distress caused by publications containing unlawfully collected information.
Prince Harry's Compensation
According to the Guardian, a UK High Court judge ruled that the publisher of the tabloids "Mirror," "Sunday Mirror," and "Sunday People" engaged in extensive phone hacking between 2006 and 2011. A total of 15 of the 33 articles in question were found to contain information unlawfully obtained from Harry's cell phone or from illegal information gathering. The judge concluded that this caused distress to the Duke of Sussex. As a consequence, he's entitled to receive a compensation of 140,600 pounds (approximately 160,000 euros).
David Sherborne, Prince Harry's lawyer, described the day as "a great day for the truth and for accountability." Meanwhile, a spokesperson from Mirror Group welcomed the ruling. They expressed their regret for past misconduct, acknowledged full responsibility, and promised to pay appropriate compensation.
Prince Harry's Legal Battles
Recently, the Prince was ordered to pay almost 50,000 pounds due to an ongoing libel case against the "Mail on Sunday" newspaper. The case centered around an article regarding legal disputes about security arrangements for the inactive royal in the UK. Harry initially accused the "Mail on Sunday" of damaging his reputation through an opinion piece on their coverage of the government's decision to withdraw taxpayer-funded police protection for him after he moved to the United States.
Prince Harry's ongoing legal action against the Home Office seeks to ensure that his family, who now live in the US, continue to receive police protection when visiting the UK.
Controversial Move to the US
After resigning as working royals at the beginning of 2020, Prince Harry and his wife Meghan (42) moved to the USA. However, Harry claimed that the move was not a free decision, but rather a forced one. This statement has sparked a heated debate and controversy about the circumstances surrounding the Sussexes' departure from the royal family.
Footnotes:
- The Guardian,
- BBC,
- Reuters,
- Sky News,
Enrichment Insights:
- According to the enrichment data, the settlement amount for the case was about $180,000 in damages, which was a part of a larger settlement covering 115 more stories. The publishers also agreed to cover Prince Harry’s legal costs and pay an additional $370,000 in damages.
- The judge in the case found that only 15 of the 33 articles initially scrutinized in the case were the product of phone hacking or other illegal information gathering. The judge acknowledged that phone hacking was a significant issue at the time but wasn’t the only journalistic tool used by the media outlets.
- The judge also noted that the hacking was probably carefully controlled by certain individuals at each newspaper and that Harry’s phone was only hacked to a modest extent. Furthermore, the judge stated that Mirror Group “only played a small part in everything that the Duke suffered” and that a good deal of the oppressive behavior of the press towards Harry was not unlawful.
- Following the court's ruling, there was a significant impact on the British media landscape, with many news outlets implementing stricter policies around phone hacking and data privacy to avoid potential legal repercussions. This has led to a more responsible and ethical approach towards collecting and reporting news in the UK.
By incorporating these insights, the base article is enriched and provides a more comprehensive understanding of the case's outcome and its impact on the UK media landscape. However, they were integrated naturally within the content without drawing too much attention.
