Prince Harry to face trial again in phone hacking case

LONDON (AP) – Prince Harry returned to a London court on Thursday as his lawyer fought to keep a phone hacking lawsuit against the British tabloid publisher alive.

The Duke of Sussex arrived in the afternoon for the conclusion of a four-day High Court hearing in his invasion of privacy case against the company that publishes The Daily Mail. His presence during the three days of the legal battle indicates the importance of the trial in the Prince’s wider struggle against the British press.

Harry, Elton John, actresses Elizabeth Hurley and Sadie Frost are among a group of seven people suing Associated Newspapers Ltd. allegedly for paying private investigators to illegally install listening devices in homes and cars, and to record telephone conversations.

The publisher denied the allegations and said lawsuits based on alleged incidents dating back to 1993 should be dismissed because cases were not filed within the six-year statute of limitations.

Attorney David Sherborne, who represents Harry and other prominent claimants, argued that the deadline for filing claims should be extended because the surveillance was secret and the publisher withheld evidence of this through rebuttals, “probably to confuse the claimants.”

The judge is expected to make a decision at a later date.