Lady Lawrence said the Duke of Sussex had likely contacted her as he was ‘looking at his own case’
Baroness Doreen Lawrence, the mother of Stephen Lawrence, has revealed she was left in “disbelief” when Prince Harry contacted her with claims about phone hacking.
The 72-year-old peer, whose son was murdered in a racist attack in 1993, is among a group of high-profile individuals taking legal action against Associated Newspapers Limited (ANL) for misuse of private information.
When asked about how she became involved in the legal case, Lady Lawrence said: “It was a contact from Prince Harry.”
“He was, I presume, looking at his own case and then my name kept cropping up, and so he felt that I should know about it,” she continued.
Baroness Doreen Lawrence, has revealed her ‘disbelief’ at being contacted by Prince Harry over alleged phone hacking
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The baroness explained she had been left in “disbelief” when Harry came to her with the claim she may have been victim of phone hacking.
“I think the moment was disbelief that why would anybody want to be listening to my calls, hacking into my phone?
“It just floors you, because you don’t expect that, but not somebody like me anyway,” Lady Lawrence told the BBC.
“You know, all I’m trying to do over the years is just to try and get justice for my son.”
Lady Lawrence said Duke of Sussex had likely contacted as he was ‘looking at his own case’
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The High Court had previously heard that Lady Lawrence was “alerted” to a potential legal claim against ANL, the publisher of the Daily Mail newspaper, through a text from the Duke of Sussex.
ANL has stringently denied the allegations and is defending itself in the High Court, describing the claims against it as “lurid” and “simply preposterous”.
The publisher maintains it has “denied under oath that its journalists had commissioned or obtained information derived from phone-hacking, phone-tapping, bugging, computer or email-hacking or burglary to order.”
The company insists the stories in question had resulted from “responsible journalism based on legitimate sources”.
The Baroness is among a group of high-profile individuals taking legal action against ANL
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The trial is scheduled to commence in January and continue for nine weeks, with combined legal costs exceeding £38million.
As well as Lady Lawrence and Prince Harry, claimants in the case against ANL include Sir Elton John and actress Liz Hurley.
The baroness described joining such prominent figures in challenging the Daily Mail’s publisher as “a bit daunting” but maintains there is a clear “case to answer”.
Lady Lawrence has demanded a public apology from the Mail, saying the newspaper has “added to the trauma” her family has endured.
Prince Harry made a surprise appearance at London’s Royal Courts of Justice in 2023 for proceedings relating to the case, expected to begin in January 2026
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She explained the allegations, relayed by the Duke of Sussex, had hit particularly hard given the Mail’s previous support for her son.
Following Stephen Lawrence’s murder, the paper campaigned on behalf of his family – including naming five prime suspects in the case in 1997.
As for Prince Harry, in March 2023 he made an unexpected appearance at the Royal Courts of Justice in London for proceedings relating to the case where his where his lawyers argue claimants had been “thrown off the scent” by ANL’s previous denials of unlawful activity.
In July, a High Court judge said Harry must hand over documents that relate to alleged payments made for evidence in his legal claim.
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