Start of trial of Duke of Sussex’s legal claim against Sun publisher delayed
The trial, due to start at 10.30am, has twice been delayed and is now expected to start later on Tuesday.
The start of the trial of the Duke of Sussex’s legal claim against the publisher of The Sun has twice been pushed back at the High Court.
Harry, as well as former Labour deputy leader Lord Tom Watson, are suing News Group Newspapers (NGN) over allegations of unlawful information gathering.
NGN, which also ran the now-defunct News Of The World, denies any unlawful activity took place at The Sun.
The trial was due to start at 10.30am on Tuesday but David Sherborne, for the duke and Lord Watson, asked the judge for it to be delayed until 11.30am.
Returning to court after the adjournment, Mr Sherborne then asked for a second delay, with the trial now expected to start at 2pm.
He said: “I have been asked whether Your Lordship would give us a further period of time to continue discussions.
“I appreciate that does put the timetable, on the face of it, under a little pressure.”
Mr Justice Fancourt agreed to both adjournments but said he was “a little concerned” with the timetable for the trial, which is expected to last several weeks.
But he said: “An hour or two in the context of eight weeks is not significant.”
He continued: “If the parties assure me that that time will be very beneficial… and will produce some outcome, then I am willing to provide further time, but I think it has to be the last adjournment.”
The trial, which is scheduled to last up to 10 weeks, is now expected to begin at 2pm at the Rolls Building in London.
Harry is expected to give evidence over several days at the trial, which has twice been adjourned since the duke began the legal action in 2019.
The judge has previously described the court battle as resembling a campaign between “two obdurate but well-resourced armies” that is taking up “more than an appropriate” amount of court time.
Several other high-profile figures have settled their cases against NGN, with 39 people settling claims between July and December last year.
In April last year, actor Hugh Grant settled his legal claim after being advised he risked being liable for £10 million in legal costs if his case proceeded to a trial.
Others who have settled cases include: actress Sienna Miller; ex-footballer Paul Gascoigne; comic Catherine Tate; radio presenter Chris Moyles; Spice Girl Melanie Chisholm; former Boyzone member Shane Lynch and actor Mathew Horne.
Speaking at The New York Times Dealbook Summit in December, the duke said he sought “truth and accountability” through legal action, stating that he was “the last person that can actually achieve that”.
He also said that he had become “professional” at litigation, but hoped “to retire fairly soon in that regard”.
A spokesperson for NGN said: “In 2011, an apology was published by NGN to victims of voicemail interception by the News Of The World. The company publicly committed to paying financial compensation and since then has paid settlements to those with claims.
“In some cases, particularly those relating to The Sun, it has made commercial sense, and in accordance with common litigation practice, for the parties to come to a financial settlement without NGN accepting liability.
“These civil proceedings have been running for many years and concern only historical events from between 14 and 29 years ago.
“There are two outstanding cases which have not managed to come to a resolution and are proceeding to trial next week, relating to Lord Watson of Wyre Forest and the Duke of Sussex.
“Lord Watson makes allegations of unlawful information gathering and phone hacking concentrating on the period 2009-2011. NGN strongly denies that any of its titles hacked Mr Watson or acted unlawfully and will also argue his claim is brought out of time.
“The duke alleges unlawful information gathering from 1996-2011. His allegations of mobile phone hacking have been struck out by the court so will not be part of the trial.
“His claim focuses now on allegations of unlawful information gathering by enquiry agents and alleged private investigators instructed by NGN journalists mainly in the early 2000s.
“His claim will be fully defended, including on the grounds that it is brought out of time.
“Both claimants allege unlawful destruction of emails by News International between 2010-2011. This allegation is wrong, unsustainable, and is strongly denied.
“NGN will be calling a number of witnesses including technologists, lawyers and senior staff to defeat the claim.
“NGN’s case will involve a range of relevant witnesses to defend the case, including current and former employees.
“The trial is running within a very strict timescale from the court and we are calling the witnesses we believe will be sufficient to defend the allegations within the timescale set by the court.”
