Prince Harry and a group of high-profile figures including Elton John have formally filed an application with the Court of Appeal after losing their legal battle against Associated Newspapers Limited, the publisher of the Daily Mail, according to Madame Figaro.
Legal representatives for the Duke of Sussex confirmed that paperwork was submitted to the Court of Appeal challenging both the substantive rulings and the financial penalties handed down by the High Court, as reported by RTL.
The latest filing marks another chapter in an ongoing crusade by the prince against the British tabloid press.
Pr Prince Harry Challenges Dismissal
In July, a High Court judge dismissed the claims brought forward by the prince and several other prominent figures after a multi-week trial.
The court concluded that the plaintiffs failed to provide sufficient evidence. This evidence was meant to demonstrate that Associated Newspapers Limited deployed unlawful information-gathering techniques—such as intercepting voicemails, wiretapping calls, or accessing private documents—to generate stories published between 1993 and 2018, according to Watson.
Lawyers from the firm Sheridans stated that the judicial decisions were marred by errors in both law and fact, prompting the request for authorization to appeal.
Alongside Prince Harry, the appeal involves musician Elton John.
The appeal also involves the artist’s husband David Furnish, actress Elizabeth Hurley, actress Sadie Frost, and Doreen Lawrence, a member of the House of Lords and mother of Stephen Lawrence, whose 1993 murder shocked the United Kingdom, as detailed by Madame Figaro.
Court Orders Multi-Million Pound Costs
In late August, a High Court judge directed the plaintiffs to pay an initial indemnity of 9,5 million pounds—equivalent to 11 million euros—to Associated Newspapers Limited, RTL reported.
The final total is to be determined at a later date.
When the original judgment was handed down, ANL praised the outcome as a major victory for its journalists and for freedom of the press, while the prince denounced the verdict as shocking and incoherent.
The duke has frequently blamed sensationalist journalism for the 1997 death of his mother, Diana, in Paris, and has accused media outlets of mistreating his wife, Meghan Markle, according to Madame Figaro.
Prior to these proceedings, he secured the condemnation of the publisher of the Daily Mirror in December 2023 and reached an undisclosed financial settlement with the owner of The Sun in January 2025.