Jan. 21 (UPI) — The trial pitting British royal Prince Harry against Rupert Murdoch’s Sun tabloid newspaper got off to a slow start Tuesday with two adjournments until the afternoon.
Judge Timothy Fancourt expressed frustration over the delay asked for by the prince’s attorneys but allowed them with caution.
“I am a little concerned about the timetable overall,” Fancourt said, according to BBC News. “On the other hand, an hour or two in the context of eight weeks is not significant. If the parties can assure me that time will be beneficial and will produce some outcome, then I am willing to provide some further time, but it has to be the last adjournment.”
Prince Harry is suing Murdoch’s News Group Newspapers, the parent of The Sun and the now defunct News of the World, over illegally gathering information on him for stories dating as far back as 1996. Harry said he did not learn about the newspaper’s methods until 2006.
The prince’s trial will look at 30 stories printed by NGN publications that he claims information was gathered illegally via British law. Former British politician Tom Watson is also a claimant and appeared in court Tuesday morning.
Prince Harry and other plaintiffs won more than $170,000 in damages in 2023 against Mirror Group Newspapers over similar charges. The prince became the first senior British royal in more than 100 years to give evidence during court when he testified in the trial.
