Prince Harry loses £50m phone hacking case against Daily Mail

Prince Harry has lost a £50 million privacy lawsuit against the publisher of the Daily Mail, according to a High Court ruling issued on Tuesday by Mr Justice Nicklin. The Duke of Sussex and six other claimants—including Sir Elton John, Liz Hurley, and Baroness Lawrence—had sued Associated Newspapers Ltd over allegations involving phone hacking and “blagging” private medical records. The judge dismissed all claims, concluding that the claimants failed to prove unlawful information gathering for the contested articles and that suspicion alone was insufficient. The court also accepted that the disputed pieces were legitimately sourced based on evidence presented by journalists. A further two-day hearing is scheduled for July 29 to determine who will pay estimated case costs of about £50 million, and the ruling highlights prior warnings of substantial financial consequences if the claim failed.