actor Hugh Grant On Wednesday, he said he had settled the lawsuit in court. Rupert Murdoch's British tabloid publisher seeks to avoid multi-million pound legal claim over alleged illegal collection of information.
Details of the settlement with News are unclear. Group Newspaper (NGN) Mr Grant said on social media that he was offered a “huge sum of money” to avoid going to court.
Despite the settlement, dozens of plaintiffs prince harry – The High Court in London said in a hearing on Wednesday that it was pursuing NGN’s alleged conduct.
Prince Harry's claims are one of several he has brought against British newspapers in recent years, and are due to go to trial in January.
Hugh Grant confirms news about X
Earlier this month, King Charles III's youngest son settled a long-standing lawsuit against the Mirror Group of newspapers, and is also suing the publisher of the Daily Mail newspaper.
In a series of posts on social media, Mr Grant confirmed in January that he had chosen not to go to trial because civil procedure rules could cost him nearly £10 million.
“As often happens with completely innocent people, they are offering me a huge amount of money to keep this matter out of court,” the 63-year-old actor said. said in Xformerly Twitter.
“I don't want to take this money or settle. I want to see all the allegations they deny tested in court.
“However, the rules of civil procedure mean that if I go to trial and the court awards me even a penny less in damages than the settlement offer, I will have to pay both parties' legal costs. ”
Hugh Grant added that he was “embarrassed in front of that fence” after his lawyer advised him that was likely.
The Star sued NGN over accusations of misconduct by journalists from the Sun tabloid and private investigators.
Mr Grant previously received a “significant sum” from the publisher, part of Mr Murdoch's global media empire, over a 2012 claim related to work on the now-shuttered News of the World title. Payment was accepted.
A spokesperson for NGN said Mr Grant's claim was resolved “without any admission of liability” and that “it is in the financial interests of both parties not to proceed to costly litigation”.
“I don't take any responsibility.”
The spokesperson added that the Sun had an ongoing case against the tabloid in the High Court and “does not accept liability or acknowledge the allegations”.
In his post, Hugh Grant claimed that NGN had spent more than £1 billion in legal fees compensating claimants and resolving more than 1,500 claims.
He vowed to “repurpose” the settlement money into “a general campaign to expose the worst excesses of our country's oligarchic news organizations.”
Written by Garyn Lambly ©Agence France-Presse
