Prince Harry, Sir Elton John, and five other high-profile individuals have been ordered to pay Associated Newspapers Limited (ANL) £9,544,355 in legal costs after their claims against the publisher of the Daily Mail and The Mail on Sunday were dismissed. The payment is due by next Friday.
Mr Justice Nicklin, who presided over the case, also granted a rare indemnity order, obliging the claimants to bear the majority of the legal costs. Such orders are typically issued when a judge believes there has been questionable conduct during the proceedings. ANL will now seek a larger proportion of the £34.5 million it spent defending the two titles.
The claimants' insurance is reportedly capped at £16.2 million, and their own costs are estimated to be at least £20 million. Lawyers for the claimants are understood to have worked, in part, on a 'no-win, no-fee' basis.
The judge found the claimants' case to be largely speculative, with allegations of criminal or seriously improper conduct made against witnesses for the first time during testimony, creating a significant risk of reputational harm. He noted that the claimants' original press release used "highly charged language" and referred to "abhorrent criminal activity, crimes, and terrible and reprehensible covert acts."
Mr Justice Nicklin stated that the claimants' conduct was "well outside the norm" and "unreasonable to a high degree," justifying the indemnity basis for costs. While the judge found no evidence of dishonesty on the claimants' part, he concluded their pursuit of the case went "far beyond what was required."
Among the claimants were Baroness Lawrence, whose son Stephen was murdered in 1993, and for whom the Daily Mail ran a campaign to find his killers. The article notes that Baroness Lawrence was drawn into the case by Prince Harry and others, with the author expressing hope that Prince Harry would financially assist her to avoid ruin, given her significant suffering.
The ruling follows a lengthy legal battle where the claimants alleged misuse of private information. The judge's decision highlighted a perceived conspiracy by the claimants to damage the newspapers, with the exception noted for Baroness Lawrence due to her past advocacy.
Calls for tighter media controls have emerged following recent events, with Green Party leader Zack Polanski and several Labour MPs demanding an inquiry into ensuring a "responsible Press." Polanski specifically criticized a piece in The Mail on Sunday, suggesting it was time to "sort out the Press" and advocating for state control or a loss of independence for media outlets that publish content he dislikes.
The article concludes by suggesting Prince Harry must accept the judgment and move forward, rather than continue a confrontational stance against the press. It posits that a less adversarial approach could lead to more favorable coverage and a less unhappy personal outcome.