Prince Harry’s Case Against NGN Newspapers Heads to Trial with Partial Victory. In a significant development for Prince Harry, his case against News Group Newspapers (NGN) is set to proceed to trial. The case centers on alleged injustices in how the press has handled stories about his private life. Notably, this is a separate case from the ones against the Mirror or the Associated Newspaper Group.
The High Court ruling allows certain parts of Prince Harry’s claims to proceed, but there are some aspects that will not be discussed. Particularly, the judge has dismissed the Duke’s claims for voicemail interception on the grounds that they are time-barred. According to the court, Prince Harry has no realistic prospect of proving that he was unaware of the hacking before the applicable date. The claims related to phone hacking and other unlawful information gathering, such as alleged incidents at the Sun and News of the World newspapers, will not proceed.
The newspaper group, however, views this as a significant victory. They maintain that they were not party to any secret agreement with Buckingham Palace, as alleged by Prince Harry. The judge found his claims regarding the alleged agreement to be implausible and not supported by sufficient evidence.
Despite this setback, Prince Harry’s claims on other matters, including allegations of blacking, use of private investigators, and surveillance, will still go to trial. The court will hold further hearings to determine the exact nature and scope of the remaining trial.
Prince Harry has been determined to seek accountability for what he perceives as press injustices. While the trial progresses, the public awaits the verdict on a previous trial against the Mirror Group Newspapers, which lasted for several weeks earlier in the summer. This legal battle has been ongoing for over a decade, and the recent court ruling marks a significant milestone for all parties involved.