Prince Harry reaches settlement in legal battle against NGN as he’s set to receive ‘substantial’ damages

A statement on behalf of the Duke of Sussex has been released

Prince Harry has reached a settlement in his lengthy legal battle against the publisher of The Sun.

The Duke of Sussex, 40, launched a lawsuit, alleging journalists and private investigators working for News Group Newspapers (NGN) used unlawful methods to get information on his private life. He also alleged executives had covered it up.

A court case was set to begin at the High Court this week and last for several. Reports claimed that Prince Harry would return to the UK within weeks to attend. However, now, all parties have reached a settlement.
Prince Harry and publishers of The Sun have reached a settlement in their legal battle (Credit: Cover Images)

Prince Harry court settlement

On Wednesday morning, Harry’s barrister David Sherborne said the parties had “reached an agreement”.

He said: “I am pleased to announce to the court that the parties have reached an agreement.”

NGN has issued an apology for “serious intrusion” by The Sun between 1996 and 2011. It admitted that investigators carried out “incidents of unlawful activity”.

NGN also confirmed it would pay “substantial damages”.
NGN has issued an apology to Prince Harry (Credit: Cover Images)

Newspaper apology to Prince Harry as court case settled

A statement read: “NGN offers a full and unequivocal apology to the Duke of Sussex for the serious intrusion by The Sun between 1996 and 2011 into his private life, including incidents of unlawful activities carried out by private investigators working for The Sun.

“NGN also offers a full and unequivocal apology to the Duke of Sussex for the phone hacking, surveillance and misuse of private information by journalists and private investigators instructed by them at the News Of The World.

“NGN further apologises to the duke for the impact on him of the extensive coverage and serious intrusion into his private life as well as the private life of Diana, Princess of Wales, his late mother, in particular during his younger years.”

It added: “We acknowledge and apologise for the distress caused to the duke. And the damage inflicted on relationships, friendships and family, and have agreed to pay him substantial damages.”
Harry will receive “substantial damages” (Credit: cover Images)

Prince Harry statement on court settlement issued by lawyer

Meanwhile, a statement on behalf of the duke said: “In a monumental victory today, News UK have admitted that The Sun, the flagship title for Rupert Murdoch’s UK media empire, has indeed engaged in illegal practices.”

It went on: “The truth that has now been exposed is that NGN unlawfully engaged more than 100 private investigators over at least 16 years on more than 35,000 occasions. This happened as much at The Sun as it did at the News of the World, with the knowledge of all the Editors and executives, going to the very top of the company.”

Lord Tom Watson, former Labour deputy leader, also took legal action against the publisher.

The statement added: “Today’s result has been achieved only through the sheer resilience of Prince Harry and Lord Watson, whose willingness to take NGN to trial has led directly to this historic admission of unlawfulness at The Sun.

“It has only been by taking NGN – not just to the steps of court but inside the court room itself – that these Claimants have finally managed to extract this historic admission of guilt.

“As a direct result of him taking a stand, Prince Harry and his immediate family have also had to repeatedly withstand aggressive and vengeful coverage since starting his claim over five years ago. This has created serious concerns for the security of him and his family.”