A High Court judge has criticised legal action involving Prince Harry and The Sun’s publisher, describing it as a campaign between “obdurate but well-resourced armies” that is consuming an excessive amount of court time.
Mr Justice Fancourt expressed his concerns in a preliminary ruling on Friday, where he resolved disputes between the legal teams for the Duke of Sussex and News Group Newspapers (NGN) over amendments to Harry’s pleaded case.
The judge stated: “I have previously indicated to the parties that this individual claim, although it raises important issues, is starting to absorb more than an appropriate share of the court’s resources, contrary to the requirement in the overriding objective to deal with cases justly and at proportionate cost.”
Prince Harry, 40, is among several individuals suing NGN over allegations of unlawful information gathering by journalists and private investigators working for The Sun and the now-defunct News Of The World.
A High Court judge has criticised legal action involving Prince Harry and The Sun’s publisher.
Reuters
A full trial of some cases is scheduled for January 2025 at the High Court.
NGN has previously denied any unlawful activity at The Sun.
In his ruling, Mr Justice Fancourt highlighted the extensive disputes between the legal teams, noting: “I am faced with a table of disputes running to 44 pages, with 49 separate items or groups of items disputed, only a handful of which were eventually agreed, and 34 pages of dense submissions by NGN in support of their objections.”
A full trial of some cases is scheduled for January 2025 at the High Court.
Reuters
The judge granted permission for certain amendments to Harry’s case while upholding some of NGN’s objections.
Mr Justice Fancourt emphasised the urgent need for swift resolution of the case. He stated: “It is clearly imperative that the content of the pleaded case is resolved as soon as possible.”
The judge also reiterated his previous stance on the trial’s timeline, saying: “I have also previously indicated that this claim will not be adjourned and will be either tried in January 2025 or settled, since it was issued as far back as September 2019 and has been stood out of eligibility for two previous listed trial dates. That remains the position.”
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The judge granted permission for certain amendments to Harry’s case while upholding some of NGN’s objections.
Reuters
Fancourt expressed frustration with the ongoing disputes, saying: “It is unsatisfactory to say the least that the court should be faced a second time with having to resolve such a large extent of disputed material on amendments to a statement of case.”
He concluded by explaining that his ruling was intentionally brief due to the urgency of the case and ongoing trial preparations.