Prince Harry and Elton John Were Ordered to Pay the Daily Mail's Publisher $13 Million

Elton John performing in 2014. Photo by Rosana Prada / CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Seven people who sued the publisher of the Daily Mail and lost have been ordered to make an interim payment of £9.5 million, about $13 million, toward the publisher’s legal costs.

The claimants were Prince Harry, Elton John, David Furnish, Doreen Lawrence, Elizabeth Hurley, Sadie Frost and Simon Hughes. The payment is due by August 28.

What the Case Alleged

The group alleged that Associated Newspapers Limited engaged in unlawful information gathering for stories published between 1997 and 2015, including voicemail interception, phone tapping and fraudulent access to records.

They lost. The UK High Court decided the case in the publisher’s favor in July, and the allegations were not established.

Why the Number Will Grow

The £9.5 million is an interim payment, not a settlement of what the claimants owe.

Associated Newspapers has estimated its full legal costs at £34.5 million, roughly $47 million. The publisher says insurance covers £16 million of the claimants’ exposure. Anything above that cap falls on the claimants personally.

That is the structure worth understanding. A £34.5 million costs bill against a £16 million insurance ceiling leaves a gap that individuals have to cover themselves.

What the Judge Said

Judge Matthew Nicklin criticized a case built “on an unjustifiably wide canvas.”

Associated Newspapers called the outcome an overwhelming victory for the Mail. Harry had earlier described the judgment as a whitewash.

What Is Still Unresolved

Simon Hughes has said he is considering whether to appeal the costs judgment. An appeal on costs would not revisit the underlying loss, only the amount and how it is apportioned.

Until then the immediate question is narrower and dated: an interim bill of £9.5 million falls due on August 28, and it is a fraction of the estimate that follows it.

References: KEYT, carrying CNN Business