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The Sun
11-07-2025
- Entertainment
- The Sun
Prince Harry's lawyers must produce documents on alleged payments to witnesses in latest legal claim
PRINCE Harry's lawyers must produce documents on alleged payments to witnesses in his latest legal claim, a judge says. Harry and six others — including actress Liz Hurley, Sir Elton John and his husband David Furnish — are suing Daily Mail publisher Associated Newspapers Limited. In May, ANL's lawyers asked the High Court to let them see documents 'that relate to payments, royalties or inducements'. Yesterday Mr Justice Nicklin ruled paperwork must be handed over. He said: "I am satisfied that documents held by the claimants that can support a case that a witness has been paid or offered other inducement for their evidence, whether directly or indirectly, should be disclosed. "That is because there is a real prospect that Associated will be able to rely upon this evidence to attack the credibility of such witnesses. "Ultimately, the issue of whether the payment or inducement does affect the credibility of any witness is a matter to be resolved at trial." ANL denies its accusers' claims that it hired private investigators to tap phones and even carry out burglaries. It previously described the claims as "lurid" and "simply preposterous". A trial is expected to start in January and last for nine weeks. 1
Telegraph
11-07-2025
- Telegraph
Prince Harry ordered to reveal any payments to witnesses in case against Daily Mail
The Duke of Sussex has been ordered to reveal to the High Court any 'payments or inducements' made in return for evidence in his claim against the Daily Mail. Associated Newspapers, the publisher that owns the Daily Mail, is accused of carrying out or commissioning unlawful activities such as hiring private investigators to place listening devices inside cars, 'blagging' private records, burglaries to order and accessing and recording private phone conversations. The publisher denies the allegations made by a group of high-profile public figures, including the Duke, Baroness Lawrence, Elizabeth Hurley, Sir Elton John, Sadie Frost and Sir Simon Hughes. Instead, they claim that incentives were 'offered or paid' by researchers working for the claimants' legal team, including a £5,000-a-month deal with a private investigator called Gavin Burrows. In a ruling handed down on Friday, Mr Justice Nicklin criticised the 'inconsistent and incoherent approach' made by the claimants to providing such evidence, declaring their explanations 'unconvincing'. He said there were 'serious questions to be answered' about the status of the claimants' research team, particularly the documents they held and whether there had been adequate disclosure. The judge ruled that the group should search for and hand over any documents that suggest that Mr Burrows, or any other potential witness, 'has skin in the game'. The trial is due to take place in January 2026. The judge's latest ruling follows a two-day case management hearing in May, during which Antony White KC, for Associated Newspapers, asked the court to order the claimants to 'search for and disclose any documents that relate to payments, royalties or inducements paid, provided or offered, or any demands or threats made, in order to obtain documents, information or other co-operation'. The barrister said a limited number of documents had been disclosed, which showed that 'payments were made or offered' to 'procure evidence and invoices'. Mr Justice Nicklin said he was satisfied that any documents suggesting witnesses had been paid or offered other inducements should be disclosed. 'That is because there is a real prospect that Associated will be able to rely upon this evidence to attack the credibility of such witnesses,' he added. 'Ultimately, the issue of whether the payment or inducement does affect the credibility of any witness is a matter to be resolved at trial. In this case, the stance adopted by the claimants has been undermined by their inconsistent and incoherent approach to disclosure of documents relating to payments to potential witnesses and/or other inducements.' The claimants were also ordered to conduct further searches for evidence relating to what has been described in court as their 'personal watershed moment' – when they became aware that they had a potential claim. The Duke of Sussex is said to have sent a text message to Baroness Lawrence alerting her that 'information' had come to light 'that she would want to know about', prompting her to join the legal action just a few months later. In a subsequent email sent by the Duke to Baroness Lawrence about the material his barrister, David Sherborne, had 'come across', he said 'he and one of his team would be keen to come and speak to you… in order to explain what this material shows and what your options are'. The Duke was told he had a potential claim by Mr Sherborne, to whom he was introduced by Sir Elton while on holiday at the singer's home in France. Associated Newspapers had sought information about such 'moments', including details of who had allegedly provided what information to whom and on what dates. 'Surprising' lack of documentation Mr Justice Nicklin said he found the lack of documentation on these pivotal moments 'surprising'. Such revelations would surely have prompted 'communications between trusted friends and family members; messages seeking advice or guidance, or expressing shock or outrage,' he said. The judge noted that a 'complete absence of corroborating documents' may be used to suggest these moments were not 'quite as shocking' as claimed. Meanwhile, the claimants' attempt to access broader call data and other information was refused by the judge, who described the requests as 'disproportionate or unfocused'. Broad allegations made about the alleged use of unlawful information gathering across all Mail titles over 25 years were also rejected. Mr Justice Nicklin warned that such allegations could not prove individual claims and that the court would 'tightly manage' the scope of the generic case to prevent the litigation from becoming 'a wide-ranging public inquiry'.
Irish Independent
25-06-2025
- Business
- Irish Independent
Everymum deal cost ‘Irish Daily Mail' publisher €1.4m
The company paid €1.4m for the business. The £2.2m deal is disclosed in new accounts for the Irish arm of the UK-headquartered Associated Newspapers, which show pre-tax profits increased by 29pc to €1.46m in the 12 months to the end of September 29 last year. The directors for Associated Newspapers (Ireland) Ltd, which trades as DMG Media Ireland, said revenues increased by 5pc from €15.64m to €16.47m as costs increased by 7pc, 'resulting in a positive profitability for the year of €3.8m'. The company recorded the post-tax profit of €3.8m after recording a corporation tax credit of €2.33m. The directors said: 'The revenue and cost increases are due to the investment in Everymum and ongoing investment in print and digital content. A note to the accounts states that on 17 October 2023 the company purchased the share capital of Everymum Limited for a total of €1.4m.* Husband-and-wife team John Mullins and Gina Militiadou of the Bray-based Zahra Media sold Everymum to DMG Media Ireland in October 2023 in the £2.2m deal. The sale came 23 years after the couple established the website. Everymum has a community of over 200,000 opted-in users. The couple's former Eumedia Ltd, which operated Everymum, recorded post-tax profits of €162,015 as revenues increased by 22pc to €1.07m in 2022. The Everymum website also includes the Ultimate Maternity Guide, the National Parenting Product Awards and the Everymum SuperValu gift bag scheme. The acquisition of Everymum continued a period of expansion at DMG Media Ireland having acquired a number of businesses over the past number of years including Business Plus, and Geek Ireland. The publishing group also operates and ADVERTISEMENT Numbers employed by the expanding group increased from 124 to 129 as staff costs rose from €9.96m to €10.49m. Pay to directors declined marginally from €762,000 to €748,000 made up of €699,000 in emoluments and €49,000 in pension contributions. Accumulated profits at the end of September last totalled €6.67m. Separate group accounts filed by Daily Mail and General Trust PLC show that revenues increased to over £1bn last year.
Irish Independent
24-06-2025
- Business
- Irish Independent
Everymum deal cost ‘Irish Daily Mail' publisher £2.2m
The £2.2m deal is disclosed in new accounts for the Irish arm of the UK-headquartered Associated Newspapers, which show pre-tax profits increased by 29pc to €1.46m in the 12 months to the end of September 29 last year. The directors for Associated Newspapers (Ireland) Ltd, which trades as DMG Media Ireland, said revenues increased by 5pc from €15.64m to €16.47m as costs increased by 7pc, 'resulting in a positive profitability for the year of €3.8m'. The company recorded the post-tax profit of €3.8m after recording a corporation tax credit of €2.33m. The directors said: 'The revenue and cost increases are due to the investment in Everymum and ongoing investment in print and digital content. 'On October 17, 2023, the company purchased the Everymum business, together with all the assets and liabilities of the business, for a total value of £2.2m.' Husband-and-wife team John Mullins and Gina Militiadou of the Bray-based Zahra Media sold Everymum to DMG Media Ireland in October 2023 in the £2.2m deal. The sale came 23 years after the couple established the website. Everymum has a community of over 200,000 opted-in users. The couple's former Eumedia Ltd, which operated Everymum, recorded post-tax profits of €162,015 as revenues increased by 22pc to €1.07m in 2022. The Everymum website also includes the Ultimate Maternity Guide, the National Parenting Product Awards and the Everymum SuperValu gift bag scheme. The acquisition of Everymum continued a period of expansion at DMG Media Ireland having acquired a number of businesses over the past number of years including Business Plus, and Geek Ireland. The publishing group also operates and Numbers employed by the expanding group increased from 124 to 129 as staff costs rose from €9.96m to €10.49m. Pay to directors declined marginally from €762,000 to €748,000 made up of €699,000 in emoluments and €49,000 in pension contributions. Accumulated profits at the end of September last totalled €6.67m. Separate group accounts filed by Daily Mail and General Trust PLC show that revenues increased to over £1bn last year.
BBC News
09-06-2025
- Business
- BBC News
Dale Vince's personal data claim against publisher thrown out
Dale Vince's High Court claim against a newspaper publisher has been thrown Vince, industrialist and founder of Stroud-based energy firm, Ecotricity, brought legal action against Associated Newspapers Limited (ANL) over a Daily Mail article headlined "Labour repays £100,000 to sex pest donor", published in June story said Labour was handing back money to donor Davide Serra with a picture showing Mr Vince holding a Just Stop Oil Vince claimed ANL misused his personal data, but the judge said it should have been heard with the defamation claim in July 2024 as "any ordinary reader would very quickly realise Mr Vince was not being accused of sexual harassment". An employment tribunal in 2022 heard Mr Serra had made sexist comments to a female colleague which were found to amount to unlawful harassment related to original picture remained in print but was changed on The Mail+ app to one of Mr Serra 47 minutes after had defended the claim and its lawyers previously told the High Court in London it was an abuse of process and a "resurrection" of a libel claim that was dismissed last Justice Swift said at the High Court on Monday: "There is no real prospect that Mr Vince will succeed on his claim. Law 'predates internet' "As in the defamation proceedings, it is accepted that on reading the text of the article published in Mail+ and the Daily Mail any ordinary reader would very quickly realise that Mr Vince was not being accused of sexual harassment."Considered on this basis the personal data relating to Mr Vince was processed fairly."He said there was "every reason" why the data protection claim should have been heard with the defamation claim last the decision, Mr Vince said he planned to appeal and the relevant media law "predates the internet".He said: "The judge said if you read the whole story, you'd realise the headline was not about me, begging the question why was my face highlighted in the articles perhaps."But more importantly, people don't read entire articles, the law assumes it - but does so wrongly, against all data and against common sense."
