The decision in the Duke of Sussex’s lawsuit against Associated Newspapers Limited was announced as he returned to the U.K.

Prince Harry has lost his years-long lawsuit against Associated Newspapers Limited.

On Tuesday, July 7, the Duke of Sussex was out in London for an event tied to the Invictus Games when a judge handed down the long-awaited decision. Harry and the six other claimants lost their privacy case against the publisher, with the court dismissing all of their claims after finding they had failed to prove their allegations of unlawful information gathering.

Prince Harry, 41, was one of seven high-profile figures — including Elton John, Elizabeth Hurley and Jude Law’s ex-wife, Sadie Frost — who claimed that ANL publications Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday published stories about them with information that had been sourced unlawfully, dating from the 1990s until 2011.

The ruling marks a significant legal setback for Harry, who has made holding Britain’s tabloid press accountable a central mission in recent years. After a 46-day trial, Mr. Justice Nicklin found that Harry and the six other claimants failed to prove their allegations that Associated Newspapers unlawfully obtained private information through methods such as hiring private investigators, “blagging” (obtaining information by deception), phone hacking or corrupt payments. The judge ruled that suspicion alone was not enough and dismissed all of the claims, finding the evidence did not establish that the articles at the center of the case were the product of unlawful information gathering.

A hearing will take place on July 29 and 30 to hear argument on any points of dispute about the consequential orders to be made following the judgment.

Prince Harry gave no outward indication of disappointment or frustration as he arrived at Chatham House in London shortly afterward, where he appeared upbeat and engaged despite likely learning of the ruling only minutes before stepping into the room.

In a statement, ALN called the ruling an “overwhelming victory for the Daily Mail and its journalists, and for a free press generally.”

“Associated Newspapers thanks Mr. Justice Nicklin for the patience and wisdom he has displayed throughout this misguided legal action, which has wasted so much valuable court time and more than £50m in legal costs,” they said, which is nearly $67 million. “We will look to resolve outstanding issues, including the recovery of the costs we have incurred while defending ourselves against this egregious litigation.”

The decision marks the ultimate conclusion of Harry’s series of lawsuits against the British press in recent years, as he’s challenged what he has described as illicit tabloid practices in court. He and his wife, Meghan Markle, 44, previously received a symbolic £1 ($1.36) in damages from the Mail on Sunday after successfully winning her legal case against the paper for publishing a personal letter she sent to her father, Thomas Markle, in 2018.

Harry also reached a surprise settlement with the publisher of The Sun, which paid an eight-figure sum in damages and issued an unprecedented apology acknowledging unlawful actions.

The Duke of Sussex traveled to London in January 2026 to take the stand for the ANL case, where he accused the British tabloids of continuing to target him and making Meghan’s life “an absolute misery.”

“By standing up here and taking a stand against them, this has continued to come after me,” Prince Harry said at the time, reiterating the toll the case had taken on him and his family. “And they have made my wife’s life an absolute misery, my Lord.”

“Through the course of this litigation, it’s only got worse, not better,” he told the court about the impact of the media coverage during the years-long saga. “It’s fundamentally wrong to put all of us through all of this again. What’s required is an apology and some accountability. It’s a horrible experience.”