For months now, I’ve wondered if the Murdoch family’s News Group Newspapers have made settlement offers to Prince Harry. I’ve wondered about how many offers have been put on the table and the size of the offers. Harry’s lawyer David Sherborne has indicated in a couple of court hearings, ahead of the trial, that at least one offer was made but that Harry rejected it because he is hellbent on seeing this through. There’s an extra layer of danger for Harry – even if the trial goes in his favor and he wins a substantial award, he could still be out millions of dollars/pounds. That’s especially true if the trial doesn’t go in his favor. This is why the Murdochs have successfully avoided any and all trials for their years of hacking, blagging and harassment. NGN has spent over a billion dollars settling with their victims, and the trial which starts today in London will be the first time anyone has gotten this far with NGN. So, obviously, the Murdochs have now made a last-ditch effort to settle with Harry. NPR’s David Folkenflik has been following the case for a long time, and he’s in London for this trial. This is what he tweeted out this morning:
There has been a massive offer from Murdoch’s camp to resolve the hacking suits from Prince Harry and former MP Tom Watson, according to a person with knowledge.
Few want this more than Wash Post CEO Will Lewis, who is placed at center of allegations of a coverup…The complaints allege a conspiracy by top Murdoch British executives, including Lewis to conceal criminality at his UK tabloids 14 years ago.
Harry/Watson previously resisted offers, saying Murdoch empire & executives would escape full accountability for what happened at the Sun
Murdoch spokesperson at News UK declined immediate comment as did a lawyer for Harry/Watson
Much activity in lawyers’ meeting rooms in the Rolls Building High Court.
Lewis has denied all wrong-doing and is not a defendant in the case. News UK has denied hacking into Tom Watson’s voice mails and says Harry is bringing up charges too late.
Again, Murdoch’s lawyers and those for Prince Harry & have been granted more time to meet – presumbably to talk about offer of massive settlement from Murdoch camp to cut off epic tabloid hacking trial at its start
[From David Folkenflik’s Twitter]
This reminds me of the noticeable chill that ran down a lot of spines when the judge in this case gave Harry access to a treasury of messages and communications between NGN and Buckingham Palace/Kensington Palace. Harry has indicated that there is a lot more to expose in this trial. From the way NGN and the British media has behaved around this case, I’ve gotten the sense that Harry is in a much stronger position than many would have you believe. I wonder how much NGN is offering as a settlement, although the amount honestly makes no difference to Harry. I feel like he would only settle if NGN made a series of disclosures, admissions or acknowledgements, and I doubt that will happen. Still, I will update this post if/when we know more.
Photos courtesy of Avalon Red, Cover Images.
