, over allegations of phone hacking and unlawful information gathering between 1991 and 2011.
The claimants’ lawyer, David Sherborne, told the court on Wednesday, that the case against MGN was “inferential,” stressing that phone hacking and other unlawful information gathering was a covert practice. “The newspapers regarded him as a prime target, perhaps one of the most prime targets, in the sense of royal stories drive newspaper sales,” Sherborne said.MGN has previously admitted its titles were involved in unlawful information gathering and has settled more than 600 claims, but says there is no evidence Harry’s phone was hacked.
MGN’s lawyer Andrew Green said in court filings that it was “highly unlikely” MGN would have targeted Harry, particularly after the 2006 arrest of the then-royal editor of Rupert Murdoch’s News of the World tabloid and a private investigator for accessing royal aides’ voicemails.