Prince Harry’s phone hacking fallout has taken a costly new twist. The Duke of Sussex and his fellow claimants now face a legal bill worth millions after their High Court defeat, according to reports.
The group includes Sir Elton John, Baroness Doreen Lawrence and Elizabeth Hurley. They sued Associated Newspapers Limited, the publisher of the Daily Mail, over claims of unlawful information gathering.
Earlier this month, Judge Mr Justice Nicklin dismissed all of their claims after an 11-week trial. Now the fight has shifted from privacy claims to a fierce row over money.
At the High Court on Wednesday, both sides began a two-day hearing on legal costs. The court must now decide who pays what after the mammoth case.
Prince Harry phone hacking row now turns into a battle over the bill
Lawyers for Prince Harry and the other claimants said ANL’s costs had reached almost £34.5m by 9 July. In written submissions, they called that figure “eye watering”.
They also said ANL had gone more than £18.6m over its approved costs budget. Nicholas Bacon KC, for the claimants, told the court the group had insurance cover worth £16.2m.
He said ANL had “overspent what they’d told us they’d actually spent”. That point could matter if the final bill climbs even higher.
The court heard that the current insurance cover may not be enough. That could leave the claimants exposed to many millions of pounds more.
Why this Prince Harry phone hacking case could sting even more
ANL wants the claimants to pay its full legal costs. It has also asked the court to award those costs on an indemnity basis.
That would give the publisher a more favourable payout. ANL says the claimants acted unreasonably during the litigation.
In written submissions, lawyers for ANL said: “Where claims involve wide-ranging allegations of dishonesty and serious criminal conduct against named individuals, a focused, responsible and proper approach is required as the norm.”
They added: “The Claimants’ conduct of this litigation wholly disregarded these key disciplines. In many cases this was in the face of repeated warnings by the court as to the proper approach to be taken.”
The claimants strongly reject that argument. Their lawyers said they acted “honestly and in good faith” throughout the case.
They also argued that making the group pay full costs would be “unjustified”. They warned it would have a “particularly harsh impact on the claimants who will bear personal liability” for any amount above their insurance cover.
The claimants’ submissions added: “They have approached this litigation in good faith, under the burden of decades of intense, intrusive media scrutiny into their private lives.”
The next twist could be the size of the final payout
The total bill has not yet been decided. But the sums already discussed in court are huge.
That means the Prince Harry phone hacking dispute now carries a serious financial threat as well as a legal sting. The hearing continues, and the final ruling on costs will decide how much Prince Harry and the other claimants may have to pay.
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