Prince Harry’s highly anticipated trial against Rupert Murdoch’s News Group Newspapers (NGN) will commence on Tuesday, marking the culmination of years of legal battles. The Duke of Sussex accuses the publisher of The Sun and the defunct News of the World of unlawful information gathering, allegedly carried out by private investigators more than a decade ago.
The lawsuit is one of several Harry, 40, has pursued against UK media outlets. It follows his victory in a phone-hacking case against Mirror Group Newspapers (MGN) in 2023, where the High Court ruled that phone hacking was “widespread and habitual” at MGN titles in the late 1990s and that his phone had been accessed.
This case, however, does not include phone hacking claims, as the presiding judge, Timothy Fancourt, previously ruled that Harry had exceeded the legal time limit for pursuing those allegations.
Claims of Cover-Ups and Unlawful Practices
Harry and co-claimant Tom Watson, former deputy leader of the Labour Party, allege that NGN employed unlawful newsgathering techniques, including the use of private investigators, to generate stories. They further claim NGN executives deliberately covered up their practices by deleting emails.
Watson, now a member of the House of Lords, also alleges his phone was hacked between 2009 and 2011, a period during which he was investigating Murdoch’s tabloids as part of a parliamentary committee.
NGN has denied all allegations, describing claims of a cover-up as “wrong” and “unsustainable.” The publisher has settled lawsuits with approximately 1,300 claimants, paying out nearly £1 billion ($1.2 billion), but has never faced a trial.
A 10-Week Legal Battle
The trial, expected to last up to 10 weeks, will see NGN call witnesses, including technologists, lawyers, and senior staff, to contest the claims. Prince Harry is set to testify, making him one of the few senior British royals to take the stand.
The allegations cover a 15-year period beginning in 1996, including instances where Harry claims private investigators targeted him unlawfully. The trial will also revisit allegations that NGN’s practices led to privacy violations affecting high-profile individuals.
“Accountability” Over Settlement
While many public figures—including Prince William and actor Hugh Grant—have opted to settle with NGN in recent years, Harry has steadfastly pursued legal action. He has rejected settlement offers, citing his desire for “accountability.” Speaking at a New York Times event, the prince emphasized that his battle against NGN is deeply personal.
In his memoir, “Spare”, Harry referred to Rupert Murdoch as “evil” and accused the media mogul of causing significant harm to public trust. “I couldn’t think of a single human being in the 300,000-year history of the species who’d done more damage to our collective sense of reality,” he wrote.
Broader Implications
The trial is expected to shed light on longstanding allegations of unethical practices within Britain’s tabloid industry. Critics argue that the country’s civil litigation system disproportionately benefits wealthy defendants, leaving claimants with little choice but to settle due to prohibitive legal costs.
For Harry, the trial is another chapter in his broader fight against intrusive press practices, a battle rooted in the tragic death of his mother, Princess Diana, during a paparazzi chase in 1997. With his testimony, the prince seeks to challenge an arm of Murdoch’s media empire and confront practices he claims have inflicted profound personal harm.
