Prince Harry Settles Hacking Suit Against The Sun; Tabloid Apologizes For Harassing Princess Diana

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Prince Harry’s yearslong legal battle against media baron Rupert Murdoch has come to an end.

And the Duke of Sussex has scored a victory that might forever change the way tabloids conduct their business worldwide.

Back in 2019, Harry filed a lawsuit against Murdoch’s News Group, owners of newspapers The Sun and the now-defunct News of the World.

The suit alleged that the papers had hacked Harry’s personal devices and hired private investigators to engage in “unlawful” acts of information gathering.

Harry’s Big Win

Now, in a move that’s left industry experts stunned, NGN has settled out of court, issuing both a “substantial” payout and a public apology to Harry and his loved ones.

Per CNN, Harry’s lawyer, David Sherborne, issued a statement today revealing that NGN “offers a full and unequivocal apology to the Duke of Sussex for the serious intrusion by The Sun between 1996 and 2011 into his private life, including incidents of unlawful activities carried out by private investigators working for The Sun.”

Sherborne went on to say that NGN specifically apologized “for the phone hacking, surveillance and misuse of private information by journalists and private investigators instructed by them at the News of the World.”

According to CNN, Sherborne revealed that NGN also apologized for its “intrusion” into the life of Harry’s late mother, Princess Diana.

The group also took responsibility for “damage inflicted on relationships, friendships, and family” and has “agreed to pay him substantial damages.”

The trial was set to get underway on Tuesday, but lawyers for both sides requested more time to work out a compromise.

No exact figure for the settlement has been revealed but CNN reports that the deal “involved an eight-figure sum” and notes that “a source involved in the case did not refute the figure when asked.”

NGN has already settled 1,300 other claims related to voicemail interception, shelling out an estimated $1.2 billion in settlements in the process.

Harry has long been a crusader against irresponsible and overly invasive tabloid journalism.

While we’re sure today’s cash settlement is a nice bonus, Harry is probably most proud of the apology to his mother, who was killed while fleeing paparazzi in 1997.

Sadly, Harry will likely continue to fear for his family’s safety until certain intrusive tabloid techniques are outlawed. But at least today’s settlement sends the message that certain practices will no longer be tolerated.