- The High Court dismissed claims of unlawful information gathering brought against Associated Newspapers Limited (ANL), publisher of the Daily Mail, by a group including the Duke of Sussex and Baroness Doreen Lawrence.
- The claimants, who also included Sir Elton John and David Furnish, alleged acts such as voicemail interception, landline tapping, and obtaining information by deception were carried out by ANL staff and associates.
- Mr Justice Nicklin ruled that none of the seven claimants had sufficiently proven their allegations, stating that while the standard of proof was the balance of probabilities, more cogent evidence was required for serious allegations.
- The judge noted that the claimants' cases often relied on inferences, but concluded that 'suspicion is not enough' and that the court could not assume unlawful sourcing simply because information was private and ANL could not explain its origin.
- In a joint statement following the ruling, the Duke of Sussex and Lady Lawrence described the decision as a 'complete and obvious whitewash' and a 'complete reversal' of previous judicial positions on similar hacking claims against other newspaper groups.
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