Prince Harry, Elton John Ordered to Pay Daily Mail £9.5m After Losing Privacy Case

Prince Harry, Elton John and five other public figures have been ordered to pay an initial £9.5 million ($13 million) to Associated Newspapers, publisher of the Daily Mail after losing their invasion-of-privacy lawsuit.

In a ruling Friday the Justice Matthew Nicklin said the payment must be made by August 28. The sum sits at the higher end of what was expected and marks a clear win for the Mail's journalists over the claimants and their lawyers.

The group had lost their High Court case last month with having accused Associated Newspapers of unlawful practices including phone hacking. Explaining his decision, Nicklin pointed to the speculative nature of the claims and the claimants' failure to drop serious allegations once they could no longer be supported also calling their conduct highly unreasonable.

The publisher says the case cost it more than £34 million. If it pursues the remaining costs, Harry and the others could owe roughly £25 million more later though they carry insurance covering about half that amount. Nicklin acknowledged the costs seemed excessive but declined to cap them also saying a cap would be arbitrary and risk unfairness.

The other claimants were Doreen Lawrence whose son Stephen was murdered in 1993, David Furnish, Elton John's husband actors Sadie Frost and Liz Hurley and former politician Simon Hughes. Lawrence's costs are expected to be covered by the group. Hughes said he was surprised the Mail's recoverable costs weren't limited. The claimants have until October 2 to decide on an appeal.

None of the group's 97 claims succeeded. The 11-week trial ended in July when Nicklin found insufficient evidence to support the allegations also suggesting the Mail's reporting may have come from legitimate sources. Associated Newspapers called the judgment a strong vindication of its journalists and questioned the conduct of the legal teams behind the case.

The ruling comes two days after news broke that Harry and wife Meghan Markle plan to move back to the UK this month and settling outside London after more than six years in California.

This defeat closes out the last of three lawsuits Harry brought against British tabloids over alleged unlawful tactics. He won a 2023 case against the Daily Mirror's publisher and Rupert Murdoch's The Sun apologised and paid damages last year to settle a similar claim.

Harry has said this litigation contributed to his rift with King Charles III and Prince William and has long blamed tabloid intrusion for his mother Princess Diana's death and for pressures that pushed him and Meghan out of royal life.