Prince Harry continued with court battles even though he knew it was 'central' in family rift
The Duke of Sussex recently settled a legal casePrince Harry recently settled his court battle against News Group Newspapers (NGN), with the publisher apologising and vowing to pay a “substantial sum”.
On Wednesday (January 22), the Duke of Sussex marked a “monumental victory” after settling his case against NGN.
Along with Lord Tom Watson, former Labour deputy leader, Harry had brought legal action against NGN over allegations of unlawful information gathering by journalists and private investigators between 1996 to 2011. He also alleged that executives covered it all up.
It came after Harry won his case against Mirror Group Newspapers (MGN) in 2023, and was paid thousands in damages.
Prince Harry, 40, has continued his lengthy legal battles against the press for years to gain justice despite admitting it was “central” in his rift with his family.
Prince Harry knew court cases were ‘central’ in rift with family
In 2024, Prince Harry opened up in an ITV documentary – Tabloids on Trial – about his “mission” to fight against the intrusion from the press.
At the time, he admitted it had been a “central piece” behind the breakdown of his relationship with the royal family – especially with father King Charles and brother Prince William.
I’ve made it very clear that this is something that needs to be done.
When asked what “extent his determination to fight the tabloids destroyed the relationship” with his family, Harry said: “Yeah, it’s certainly a central piece in it. But it’s a hard question to answer because anything I say about my family results in a torrent of abuse from the press.
“I’ve made it very clear that this is something that needs to be done. It would be nice if we did it as a family. But I’m doing this for my reasons.”
Prince William, 42, had previously settled a legal case against NGN in 2020 out of court for a “very large sum”.
NGN’s apology to Duke of Sussex as court case settled
On Wednesday, Harry received an apology from NGN over its “serious intrusion” by The Sun between 1996 and 2011.
NGN also confirmed it would pay “substantial damages”. A statement read: “NGN further apologises to the duke for the impact on him of the extensive coverage and serious intrusion into his private life as well as the private life of Diana, Princess of Wales, his late mother, in particular during his younger years.”
The brother of Princess Diana and Prince Harry’s uncle Charles Spencer praised the duke over his win. He said on Instagram: “It takes an enormous amount of guts to take on major media organisations like this. And incredible tenacity to win against them.
“It’s wonderful that Harry also secured an apology for his mother – she would be immensely touched by this, I’m sure. And also rightly proud. Well done indeed.”
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