Hugh Grant is leading another attempt to prove that the phone hacking took place in the Sun, although Rupert Murdoch’s newspaper continues to claim that it was not illegal there.
The actor followed Paul Gascoigne and Sienna Miller in making a so-called allegation of hacking “sun-only” phones, claiming that it was illegal in the daily tabloids in the 2000s. Rebecca Brooks, Murdoch’s current CEO of News UK Business, was Sun’s editor during the period.
The British company Murdoch’s News has already paid millions of pounds to settle claims from people like Miller and Gascoigne over the alleged activities of Sun journalists, ensuring that the accusations are not heard in the process.
“I suspect this is to some extent limiting the damage,” said Nathan Sparks, chief executive of Hacked Off, which is fighting for tighter press regulation. “In the case of Sun, it is most likely because they are trying to avoid a full-fledged lawsuit, which could reveal many other details that they do not want to appear.
More such cases are expected in the future, which is a growing headache for Murdoch’s business as he tries to move out of the era of phone hacking and instead focus on the upcoming launch of his Pierce Morgan news channel, talkTV. Morgan himself has faced ongoing accusations – which he vehemently denies – that he must have known about the practice while he was editor of the Daily Mirror in the 2000s.
Hugh Grant’s case is embarrassing for News UK because the company has always said that its illegal activities took place exclusively in News of the World, the Sunday edition that closed in 2011 after 168 years.
This left Sun in the unusual position of claiming not to hack phones, while choosing to pay huge sums for damages and court fees – albeit without any admission of wrongdoing – to people who claim otherwise.
Current litigation costs have hit Sun’s value as a business and made it suffer huge financial losses.
The company recently failed to stop an ongoing legal process that makes it easier to sue alleged victims of phone hacking. With thousands more potential victims waiting on their wings, the lawsuit over phone hacking could now extend to the third decade – potentially adding to the hundreds of millions of pounds already paid by Murdoch’s company.
Among those who have filed new phone hacking lawsuits against the company in recent weeks are Government Secretary Zach Goldsmith, his mother Lady Annabel Goldsmith, football manager Alan Pardew, former Cabinet Minister Chris Hyun, Spice Girl Mel B and Liz McLaughler. Atomic Kitten, actors Gillian Anderson and Kate Winslet, boxer Joe Calzaghe and Steps singer Lisa Scott-Lee.
Grant, who filed a phone hacking lawsuit against News of the World in 2012, is unusual, as he is one of a relatively small group of people who can file a separate lawsuit specifically against Sun.
Under complex legislation, the still-publishing Sun and the non-existent News of the World are owned by the same parent company, which means it can settle lawsuits against the latter, provided victims cannot file a separate lawsuit against the former.
But the people who secured some of the first phone hacking agreements in the early 2010s – such as Grant – were not asked to agree to such terms. This allows them to file a second lawsuit against Sun.
Rich, the current owner of the Daily Mirror, also faces lengthy and ongoing lawsuits for historical crimes against phone hacking in his tabloids. Prince Harry also has a lawsuit that is pending in the courts, allegedly involving wrongdoing in the Sun, News of the World and the Mirror publisher.
Sparks, whose organization is pushing for a public investigation into media-police relations, said: “The background to the hacking is not only the practice itself, but also the cover-up and culture that allowed it to happen. It may have happened a long time ago, but there is no evidence that culture has changed fundamentally. “
News UK asked for comment.
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