Prince Harry Seeks to Appeal Dismissal of Privacy Lawsuit Against Daily Mail Publisher

London: Britain’s Prince Harry has applied for permission to appeal a London court ruling that rejected his privacy lawsuit against the publisher of the Daily Mail, his lawyer said on Friday, as the Duke of Sussex seeks to revive his long-running legal battle with the British press.

Prince Harry, the younger son of King Charles, was among several high-profile figures who sued Associated Newspapers, publisher of the Daily Mail and the Mail on Sunday, alleging unlawful information gathering. Other claimants in the case included singer Elton John, his husband David Furnish, actors Elizabeth Hurley and Sadie Frost, anti-racism campaigner Doreen Lawrence and former politician Simon Hughes.

In July, the High Court comprehensively dismissed their claims, with Justice Matthew Nicklin ruling that the claimants had failed to prove that the publisher obtained their private information through unlawful means, noting that some of the reporting may have come from legitimate sources. The court later ordered that the claimants could face an even higher legal bill on the grounds that the lawsuits had been brought unreasonably.

In a statement issued on behalf of six of the seven claimants, including Prince Harry, Elton John and Elizabeth Hurley, their lawyer said they had applied for permission to appeal both the dismissal of their claims and the costs order, adding that they respectfully disagreed with what they described as unprecedented decisions which they consider legally and factually flawed.

Associated Newspapers, which had hailed the July judgment as an overwhelming victory and a vindication of its journalism, did not immediately respond to requests for comment. There was also no comment from a spokesperson for Prince Harry.

The case against the Daily Mail marked the culmination of Prince Harry’s long campaign against the British tabloid media. He previously won a case against the publisher of the Daily Mirror over phone hacking and settled a claim with Rupert Murdoch’s British newspaper group, which issued an apology and agreed to pay substantial damages.

The Duke, who recently returned to Britain from the United States with his wife Meghan, has long blamed the press for the 1997 Paris car crash that killed his mother, Princess Diana, and has drawn comparisons with the media’s treatment of his wife. During the trial, he told the court, holding back tears, that the Mail had made Meghan’s life a misery.