Was it worth it?
It’s been well reported in the UK media that Prince Harry has been waging war on Britain’s press establishment in a series of protracted legal battles fought out in the High Court and beyond.
Whilst he’s had a few victories along the way, namely a settlement in 2025 against the Sun’s publishers, News Group Newspapers, and a win against Mirror Group Newspapers in 2023, his latest action against the press has been unsuccessful.
In 2022, Harry, alongside seven fellow claimants, accused the Associated Newspapers Ltd, publishers of the Daily Mail, Mail Online, and Mail on Sunday, of “clear, systematic and sustained use of unlawful information-gathering”.
Four years and an eleven-week High Court trial later, all 97 allegations were dismissed by Mr Justice Nicklins, who found that the claimants failed to prove any unlawful conduct. What’s more, this ordeal has reportedly racked up legal costs of £50 million!
Given everything at stake, is litigation really effective enough at holding the press (or anyone) accountable to outweigh the costs of such a lengthy, expensive process? While a sensitive and live matter, Alex Aldrige, and Julia Szaniszlo are back to discuss the nuances of this story, what the true cost of litigation can be, who really wins and loses in the process, and why, ultimately, it can be a very costly mistake.
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