Prince Harry Names William and Kate as Key Figures in His Ongoing Tabloid Lawsuit
Prince Harry’s ongoing court battle over his tabloid lawsuit is drawing attention for more reasons than one. While he has previously spoken about the accused media outlet causing immense emotional distress to both him and his wife, the latest developments have pulled other family members into the spotlight. The Duke of Sussex’s witness statement, released on Jan. 21, referenced his late mother, Princess Diana, in the context of sustained media scrutiny. He has now also named his brother, Prince William, and sister-in-law, Princess Kate, in his most recent filing.
Harry's lawsuit against Associated Newspapers, the publisher of the Daily Mail and The Mail on Sunday, witnessed high-potency revelations, with the Prince looping in his other family members. During the recent witness statement at London’s High Court, Harry took centre stage and revealed that the outlet's unlawful information-gathering shenanigans have prevailed for years, affecting his brother in the same capacity as himself. As indicated by PEOPLE, the Duke has named 10 associates he was in regular contact with during the relevant period, which included his brother, father, sister-in-law, and even his ex-girlfriend, Chelsy Davy
Harry detailed that during his cordial era with his brother, The HRH The Prince of Wales confided in him with several personal details, which were unlawfully attained by the accused publisher. “Due to his (William's) position, the press have always been very interested in him. As brothers, we naturally discussed personal aspects of our lives as we trusted each other with the highly sensitive information we shared about our private, family, and professional lives," revealed Harry.
The Duke even alleged private details appearing in the Daily Mail, a result of the unlawful attainment of information shared within trusted relationships. He backed his claims, citing his years-long interaction with his father over the course of their regular contact. “During the Relevant Period, my father and I were in regular contact. He was also of great interest to the press due to his position. My private information would have been present on voicemails, containing highly personal, private, and sensitive information, left on his landline phone by me, other members of my family, and the Royal Household," detailed the Duke.
In the 10 people associate-list, Harry highlighted his telephone conversations with his ex-girlfriend, Davy, with whom he had an on-and-off relationship from 2004 to 2010. During his court statement, the now-married Harry revealed he shared several 'personal matters, including all aspects of our relationship,' through calls, texts, and voicemails that were left on her cellular and landline devices in South Africa. "As she was my girlfriend, I trusted Chelsy with the most private of information and vice versa. I know that [private investigator] Gavin Burrows admitted doing lots of unlawful activities in respect of her, which is deeply troubling, but explains how Associated got so much information about us (often before others)," stated Harry.
The Duke also named Kate in his statement, citing no additional explanation for her name, just her brief mention ranking ninth on the list. "HRH The Princess of Wales, my brother’s wife," read the shortest statement in her name, including no further explanation. The Duke's list consists of other names like those of former royal equerry Mark Dyer, Harry’s former private secretary Helen Asprey, and his childhood nanny, Tiggy Legge-Bourke, among others.