The media cant really get enough of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle. And now Prince Harry continues to find himself in court for an ongoing series of lawsuits that he and Duchess Meghan have brought against an intrusive media. Over the past few years, the couple has filed more than a half-dozen lawsuits in both the U.S. and England against various media entities who are not just invading their privacy but also putting their lives at risk.
Prince Harry has five active lawsuits that are directly related to the safety and privacy of his family. One is related to reinstating his family police protection, two are against separate newspaper companies including Mirror Group Newspapers and News Group Newspapers accusing them of illegal information gathering. Two suits against Associated Newspapers Ltd. charging them of libel and illegal information gathering.
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Phone Hacking Trial
London High Court is currently hearing a case brought by Harry and other celebrities against Mirror Group Newspapers, owner of the British tabloid Daily Mirror. This lawsuit is one of the three similar suits filed by Harry against publishers accused of hacking the phone of celebrities, alleging that between 1996 and 2011, The Mirror, The Sun, and Daily Mail hacked into phone voicemails in order to access private information.
Although the tabloid lawyers also argued that Harry and other celebrities brought their case beyond a reasonable time limit and that the case should be thrown out. However, the trial is underway and Harry is expected to testify this month.
The Case Of Private Letter
Duchess Meghan Markle made an invasion of privacy claim against Associated Newspapers Ltd. after the Mail on Sunday published extracts of the letter she wrote to her estranged father in 2018. And in February 2021, Meghan won and received $1.24 for the victory which her lawyers said was mostly about the principle of privacy. The publication was ordered by the court to publish a notice that it had lost the case, however, the publisher’s appeal was rejected.
Case Of Aerial Photos
In July 2020, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle filed a lawsuit against U.S celebrity photo agency X17 alleging that the photographers used drones and helicopters to take aerial photos of Archie who was then 14 months.
He was playing at their private residence in Montecito, near Santa Barbara in California. In October 2020, the couple then reached a settlement with the agency which apologized to the family and agreed to stop distributing the images in question.
Helicopter Shots Lawsuit
Prince Harry sued Splash News and Picture Agency over aerial photographs taken of the couple’s home in the Cotswolds outside of London. Harry argued the photos taken by helicopter, captured images of private rooms in their home which also included the bedroom.
In May 2019, Harry received a financial settlement and an apology from Splash News and Picture Agency. Splash News also had to cover all legal costs of the suits as is customary in the British judicial system. The case is however settled.
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Two Lawsuits Against ‘Daily Mail’
In February 2022, Prince Harry filed a suit in which he claimed that an article in the Mail, a sister paper to Daily Mail both owned by Associated Newspapers Ltd. accused him of trying to mislead the public about a separate legal battle with the government over the police protection which stripped away when the couple announced they are no longer part of the royal family.
Later in July, a London judge ruled that the article was defamatory, which allowed Harry to move forward with a libel claim against Associated Newspapers Ltd. to trial. Moreover, he sued the company for illegally obtaining private information.
Police Protection And The British Government
In February 2020, the duke sued U.K.Home Office over the decision to remove his police protection taken by a committee called RAVEC. Harry’s legal team has argued that it is unsafe for him in Britain without Metropolitan Police bodyguards and he has offered to pay to fund them to avoid a burden on the taxpayer.
A court filing by his team on July 7 read “Prior to the decision being taken, Prince Harry should have been given a clear and full explanation of the composition of RAVEC and those involved in its decision-making, i.e. that this included The Royal Household.”
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