A judge has warned Prince Harry that his legal battle against Associated Newspapers Ltd is not a "public inquiry" during a recent court hearing.
The judge emphasised the need for "real examples" of unlawful information gathering rather than broad allegations.
"What is the control mechanism to ensure this does not become a wide-ranging public inquiry?" the judge asked. "What the court is looking for is real examples."
The judge further clarified what constitutes unlawful information gathering versus a breach of confidence.
Judge asks Prince Harry for 'real examples' as Duke prepares for major legal battle
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He stated that if there was a "cast-iron demonstration" by a journalist that information was obtained from a "straightforward, up and down source", it may represent a breach of confidence, but not necessarily unlawful information gathering.
He warned the Duke's lawyer that examining other articles by that journalist would not help him "one bit".
The judge cautioned that the claimants were coming "perilously close" to suggesting defence evidence was irrelevant.
David Sherborne, representing the claimants, argued that further evidence was needed from Associated Newspapers.
David Sherborne arriving at the Royal Courts of Justice todayGetty"The claimants' cases allege a web of illegal acts - pulling on threads of that web may reveal more of the pattern," he said.
This suggests the legal team is seeking to establish a broader pattern of behaviour rather than focusing solely on individual incidents.
Antony White KC, for Associated, accused the claimants of "hunting for an ever-expanding case that there were other victims of unlawful information gathering".
He said they were trying "to fish for something" that might assist their claim.
Prince Harry has accused the Daily Mail publisher of illegal activityGettyWhite warned that the case must not be treated as "just another example" of phone hacking litigation brought against other publishers.
He argued these claims "differ fundamentally" from those against Mirror Group Newspapers and News Group Newspapers and must be "independently proved".
Prince Harry is one of several high-profile individuals bringing legal action against Associated Newspapers Ltd.
The group includes Baroness Doreen Lawrence, Sir Elton John, his husband David Furnish, actresses Sadie Frost and Liz Hurley, and former Liberal Democrat politician Sir Simon Hughes.
Prince Harry will go to trial against The Mail publisherPAThe Duke's specific claim concerns 14 articles published between 2001 and 2014.
Associated Newspapers firmly denies all the allegations made against it. The publisher has described the claims as "lurid" and "simply preposterous".
White highlighted that, unlike previous cases against other publishers, there is no "bedrock of criminal convictions" supporting these claims.
"There is no similar 'bedrock' here. Associated denies the claims," he told the court. The case continues with both sides presenting strongly contrasting positions on the allegations.
