Prince Harry - He celebrates a small triumph in court
After a recent defeat in court, there is now at least a small success: as the British Guardian reports, Prince Harry (39) has won a partial victory in the phone hacking case against the British media group Mirror Group Newspapers (MGN). The son of King Charles III (75) is now entitled to compensation. According to the report, the ruling will also have a far-reaching impact on the British media landscape.
The judge at the High Court in London ruled that the publisher of the tabloid newspapers "Mirror", "Sunday Mirror" and "Sunday People" had carried out "extensive" phone hacking from 2006 to 2011. It was concluded that 15 of the 33 newspaper articles at the center of the trial were the result of hacking attacks on Prince Harry's cell phone or unlawful information gathering.
Prince Harry is entitled to this compensation
The judge ruled that Prince Harry had suffered distress as a result of the publication of the articles, which contained unlawfully collected information. He is now entitled to damages of 140,600 pounds (approx. 160,000 euros). The Guardian quotes Harry's lawyer David Sherborne as saying: "Today is a great day for the truth and for accountability." The court ruled that the three Mirror Group newspapers had carried out "habitual and widespread unlawful and criminal activity" over a period of years.
A spokesman for the Mirror Group also commented positively on the ruling: "We welcome today's judgment which gives the company much clarity to move forward following the events that took place many years ago. Where misconduct has taken place in the past, we apologize unreservedly, accept full responsibility and pay appropriate compensation."
In the trial, which lasted seven weeks, Prince Harry had stated that he had been persecuted by the makers of the newspapers for years. He also accused the Mirror Group of hacking his phone and doing other illegal things to obtain information about his private life. He was the first British royal in 130 years to appear as a witness in court.
Prince Harry suffered a defeat in this trial
Another legal dispute recently ended expensively for Prince Harry: earlier this week, he was ordered to pay almost 50,000 pounds in damages as part of an ongoing libel case against the "Mail on Sunday" newspaper.
Harry had sued the publisher Associated Newspapers Limited (ANL) over an article that reported on the legal dispute over security arrangements for the inactive royal in the UK. The Prince felt his reputation had been damaged by the opinion piece. The article is an opinion piece from February 2022 about the government's decision to withdraw taxpayer-funded police protection from Harry after he moved to the US.
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.
Prince Harry and his wife Meghan (42) resigned as working royals at the beginning of 2020 and moved to the USA. However, the Duke of Sussex claims that the move was not a free decision. Instead, he and his family were forced out of the United Kingdom.
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- Following the court's ruling, the British media outlet 'Guardian Media Group' reported that Prince Harry (39) secured a partial victory in his phone hacking case against 'Mirror Group Newspapers'.
- The Supreme Court in London found that 'Mirror Group Newspapers' engaged in extensive phone hacking from 2006 to 2011, leading to 15 articles publishes containing information unlawfully obtained from Prince Harry's phone.
- As a result of this finding, Prince Harry is now entitled to receive 'damages' of 140,600 pounds (approximately 160,000 euros) due to distress caused by the publication of these articles.
- The ruling against 'Mirror Group Newspapers' is expected to have a significant impact on the British media landscape, setting a precedent for future cases involving phone hacking and unlawful information gathering.
- In a positive response to the ruling, a spokesperson for 'Mirror Group Newspapers' acknowledged the misconduct and expressed their commitment to paying appropriate compensation for any wrongs committed in the past.
Source: www.stern.de
