Prince Harry, Elton John Have to Pay Big Bucks to Daily Mail

Prince Harry and six others, including Elton John, have been ordered to pay an initial $13 million to the publisher of Britain's Daily Mail newspaper following their failed invasion-of-privacy case. In a judgment on Friday, Justice Matthew Nicklin said the payment must be made by Aug. 28, per the AP. The development comes following their defeat in a High Court case in London last month alleging malpractice, such as the illegal hacking of phones. The publisher had strongly denied the claims made during the 11-week trial in London, which ended on July 7 when Nicklin said there'd been a shortage of evidence to support the claims and found a possibility that the reporting came from legitimate sources.

The other high-profile figures behind the case were Doreen Lawrence, the anti-racism activist whose son Stephen was stabbed to death in 1993 as he waited for a bus; Elton John's film producer husband, David Furnish; actors Sadie Frost and Elizabeth Hurley; and politician Simon Hughes. The judgment came two days after it was made public that Harry and his wife, Meghan Markle, plan on moving back to the UK. The Duke and Duchess of Sussex, who are no longer working royals, decamped to California more than six years ago but will relocate back later this month to live in a nonroyal residence outside London.

Harry's defeat against Associated Newspapers brought an end to a trio of lawsuits accusing tabloid publishers of using unlawful tactics, such as phone hacking or hiring private detectives to dig up dirt on his life. Harry won a judgment in 2023 that condemned the publishers of the Daily Mirror for "widespread and habitual" phone hacking. Last year, Rupert Murdoch's flagship UK tabloid, the Sun, made an unprecedented apology for intruding on Harry's life for years and agreed to pay substantial damages to settle his privacy invasion lawsuit.

Harry has said his litigation—in which he broke with royal family tradition to seek relief in the courts—was a primary source of his falling out with father King Charles III and brother Prince William. His grudge with the tabloids runs deep, and his legal actions are part of his larger quest to reform the news media that he says damaged his relationships and made him "paranoid beyond belief."