According to court documents filed by Prince Harry’s lawyers, Prince William settled a phone-hacking claim against Rupert Murdoch’s UK newspaper arm for a ‘huge sum’ in a secret deal with Buckingham Palace. The claims were filed in court as part of Prince Harry’s lawsuit against News Group Newspapers (NGN) at the High Court in London for multiple unlawful acts allegedly committed on behalf of its tabloids, the Sun and now defunct News of the World, from the mid-1990s until 2016.
NGN, which has paid out millions of pounds to settle more than a thousand phone-hacking cases, is seeking to strike out claims by the prince and British actor Hugh Grant, arguing they should have taken action sooner. However, Harry’s legal team has said that a deal had been agreed between NGN and Buckingham Palace to hold off any claims until the conclusion of other outstanding phone-hacking litigation.
In a witness statement, Prince Harry said NGN had settled William’s claim ‘for a huge sum of money in 2020… without any of the public being told, and seemingly with some favourable deal in return for him going ‘quietly’ so to speak’. Prince William’s office and NGN have declined to comment on ongoing legal proceedings. During a criminal trial in 2014, it was revealed that the former royal editor of News of the World, Clive Goodman, had hacked the voicemails of both Harry and William, as well as those of William’s wife, Kate.
In his statement, Prince Harry has accused NGN and senior figures within his family of being in cahoots with the press to protect their image. He also criticized the secret deal, saying it was struck to avoid a member of the royal family from testifying in court.
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