Prince Harry loses privacy case against 'Daily Mail' publisher
What's the story
Prince Harry has lost a landmark privacy case against Associated Newspapers, the publisher of The Daily Mail, according to Reuters. The Duke of Sussex and other claimants, including Elton John and David Furnish, had accused the publisher of unlawful information gathering. However, their claims were dismissed by High Court Judge Justice Nicklin on Tuesday.
Court decision
Prince Harry calls ruling a 'whitewash'
The court ruled that the claimants had failed to prove their allegations. The summary of the judgment stated, "The Court rejected the attempt to prove the claims by broad inference where there remained a legitimate and realistic possible lawful source pathway." Reacting to the ruling, Prince Harry said in a statement, "We came to court seeking justice and accountability. But we have received neither."
Allegations
Claimants accused Associated Newspapers of unlawful information gathering
The lawsuit alleged that Associated Newspapers had hired people to listen to private phone calls, bribed police officers with "corrupt links to private investigators" for confidential information, and impersonated individuals to access medical records. The publisher called these claims "preposterous smears," adding they were a planned attempt to drag the Mail titles into a phone-hacking scandal involving articles from 30 years ago.
Criticism
'Hard to understand or reconcile with common sense'
In his statement, Prince Harry criticized the ruling as a "complete reversal" of previous judges' positions on hacking claims. He said, "Generic findings about various private investigators that were held by the Courts in these parallel claims to have carried out unlawful activity at the very same time in relation to similar stories...and well-known individuals have been...wholly ignored." "The fact that this Court has chosen to dismiss them represents an inconsistency...which is hard to understand or reconcile with common sense."
Publisher's response
Associated Newspapers called it a 'magnificent vindication'
Associated Newspapers welcomed the court's decision, calling it a "magnificent vindication" of The Daily Mail's journalism. The publisher stated that every single one of the 97 allegations made by the claimants was dismissed. They added, "For some of the most outrageous allegations made when the case was launched in a blaze of publicity four years ago, no credible evidence was ever presented."