Prince Harry has arrived at the Royal Courts of Justice for a pivotal day in his case against Associated Newspapers Limited, the company behind the Daily Mail.
The royal is due to take the witness stand at the High Court today with his evidence scheduled to begin at 11:30am.
The Duke of Sussex is part of a group of prominent figures bringing claims against ANL, including Sir Elton John, his husband David Furnish, Baroness Doreen Lawrence, Sir Simon Hughes, Sadie Frost and Liz Hurley.
The claimants allege the publisher engaged in unlawful methods to obtain information, such as intercepting phone calls and deceiving individuals to access private records.
Prince Harry has arrived at the Royal Courts of Justice for a pivotal day in his case against Associated Newspapers Limited, the company behind the Daily Mail.
|Reuters
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Harry attended proceedings on Monday and Tuesday but departed during the lunch break yesterday. His testimony was originally scheduled for Thursday, though earlier-than-expected completion of opening arguments means he will now appear today.
ANL has firmly rejected all allegations of wrongdoing and is contesting the claims in court.
The publisher's barrister, Antony White KC, told the court on Tuesday that the case against his client was "threadbare" and had been filed outside the permitted timeframe.
He argued that ANL's journalists offer "a compelling account of a pattern of legitimate sourcing" for the more than 50 articles allegedly produced through illicit means.
The Duke of Sussex is part of a group of prominent figures bringing claims against ANL, including Sir Elton John, his husband David Furnish, Baroness Doreen Lawrence, Sir Simon Hughes, Sadie Frost and Liz Hurley.
|PA
Mr White dismissed references to payments made by journalists to private investigators as "examples of clutching at straws in the wind and seeking to bind them together in a way that has no proper analytical foundation".
In written submissions, the barrister stated that ANL "strongly denies" any unlawful gathering of information, including voicemail interception, targeting the duke.
Representing the claimants, David Sherborne told the court that Harry believes he has "endured a sustained campaign of attacks against him" for "having had the temerity to stand up" to ANL.
The barrister noted that the duke's witness statement describes the psychological toll of this experience, including feelings of distress and paranoia.
The royal is due to take the witness stand at the High Court today with his evidence scheduled to begin at 11:30am.
|PA
Mr Sherborne explained that the 14 articles central to Harry's claim, published between 2001 and 2013, "focus primarily and in a highly intrusive and damaging way, on the relationships which he formed, or rather tried to form, during those years prior to meeting his now wife Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex".
He accused the publisher of deploying "smoke and mirrors" and "carefully orchestrated attacks" on those bringing the case, arguing such tactics could not "save Associated this time".
Mr Sherborne emphasised that the pursuit of financial compensation is not what motivated the claimants to bring this action.
"It is the uncovering of the truth of what was done to them, and Associated taking accountability for that," he told the court.
Proceedings are scheduled to continue until March, when the trial is expected to conclude. A judgment will be delivered in written form at a subsequent date.
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